ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements and Analyst Reports
Certain written and oral statements, other than purely historic information, including estimates, projections, statements relating to NIKE’s business plans, objectives and expected operating or financial results and the assumptions upon which those statements are based, made or incorporated by reference from time to time by NIKE or its representatives in this report, other reports, filings with the SEC, press releases, conferences or otherwise, are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements include, without limitation, any statement that may predict, forecast, indicate or imply future results, performance or achievements, and may contain the words “believe,” “anticipate,” “expect,” “estimate,” “project,” “will be,” “will continue,” “will likely result” or words or phrases of similar meaning. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties which may cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. The risks and uncertainties are detailed from time to time in reports filed by NIKE with the SEC, including reports filed on Forms 8-K, 10-Q and 10-K, and include, among others, the following: health epidemics, pandemics and similar outbreaks, including the COVID-19 pandemic; international, national and local political, civil, economic and market conditions; the size and growth of the overall athletic or leisure footwear, apparel and equipment markets; intense competition among designers, marketers, distributors and sellers of athletic or leisure footwear, apparel and equipment for consumers and endorsers; demographic changes; changes in consumer preferences; popularity of particular designs, categories of products and sports; seasonal and geographic demand for NIKE products; difficulties in anticipating or forecasting changes in consumer preferences, consumer demand for NIKE products and the various market factors described above; our ability to execute on our sustainability strategy and achieve our sustainability-related goals and targets, including sustainable product offerings; difficulties in implementing, operating and maintaining NIKE’s increasingly complex information technology systems and controls, including, without limitation, the systems related to demand and supply planning and inventory control; interruptions in data and information technology systems; consumer data security; fluctuations and difficulty in forecasting operating results, including, without limitation, the fact that advance orders may not be indicative of future revenues due to changes in shipment timing, the changing mix of orders with shorter lead times, and discounts, order cancellations and returns; the ability of NIKE to sustain, manage or forecast its growth and inventories; the size, timing and mix of purchases of NIKE’s products; increases in the cost of materials, labor and energy used to manufacture products; new product development and introduction; the ability to secure and protect trademarks, patents and other intellectual property; product performance and quality; customer service; adverse publicity and an inability to maintain NIKE’s reputation and brand image, including without limitation, through social media or in connection with brand damaging events; the loss of significant customers or suppliers; dependence on distributors and licensees; business disruptions; increased costs of freight and transportation to meet delivery deadlines; increases in borrowing costs due to any decline in NIKE’s debt ratings; changes in business strategy or development plans; general risks associated with doing business outside of the United States, including, without limitation, exchange rate fluctuations, inflation, import duties, tariffs, quotas, sanctions, political and economic instability, conflicts and terrorism; the potential impact of new and existing laws, regulations or policy, including, without limitation, tariffs, import/export, trade, wage and hour or labor and immigration regulations or policies; changes in government regulations; the impact of, including business and legal developments relating to, climate change, extreme weather conditions and natural disasters; litigation, regulatory proceedings, sanctions or any other claims asserted against NIKE; the ability to attract and retain qualified employees, and any negative public perception with respect to key personnel or our corporate culture, values or purpose; the effects of NIKE’s decision to invest in or divest of businesses or capabilities and other factors referenced or incorporated by reference in this report and other reports.
Risk Factors
The risks included here are not exhaustive. Other sections of this report may include additional factors which could adversely affect NIKE’s business and financial performance. Moreover, NIKE operates in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risks emerge from time to time and it is not possible for management to predict all such risks, nor can it assess the impact of all such risks on NIKE’s business or the extent to which any risk, or combination of risks, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. Given these risks and uncertainties, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results.
Investors should also be aware that while NIKE does, from time to time, communicate with securities analysts, it is against NIKE’s policy to disclose to them any material non-public information or other confidential commercial information. Accordingly, shareholders should not assume that NIKE agrees with any statement or report issued by any analyst irrespective of the content of the statement or report. Furthermore, NIKE has a policy against confirming financial forecasts or projections issued by others. Thus, to the extent that reports issued by securities analysts contain any projections, forecasts or opinions, such reports are not the responsibility of NIKE.
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Economic and Industry Risks
Global economic conditions could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results and financial condition.
The uncertain state of the global economy continues to impact businesses around the world. If global economic and financial market conditions deteriorate, the following factors could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results and financial condition:
•Our sales are impacted by discretionary spending by consumers. Declines in consumer spending have in the past and in the future may result in reduced demand for our products, increased inventories, reduced orders from retailers for our products, order cancellations, lower revenues, higher discounts and lower gross margins.
•In the future, we may be unable to access financing in the credit and capital markets at reasonable rates in the event we find it desirable to do so.
•We conduct transactions in various currencies, which creates exposure to fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates relative to the U.S. Dollar. Continued volatility in the markets and exchange rates for foreign currencies and contracts in foreign currencies could have a significant impact on our reported operating results and financial condition.
•Continued volatility in the availability and prices for commodities and raw materials we use in our products and in our supply chain (such as cotton or petroleum derivatives) could have a material adverse effect on our costs, gross margins and profitability. In addition, supply chain issues caused by factors including the COVID-19 pandemic and geopolitical conflicts have impacted and may continue to impact the availability, pricing and timing for obtaining commodities and raw materials.
•If retailers of our products experience declining revenues or experience difficulty obtaining financing in the capital and credit markets to purchase our products, this could result in reduced orders for our products, order cancellations, late retailer payments, extended payment terms, higher accounts receivable, reduced cash flows, greater expense associated with collection efforts and increased bad debt expense.
•If retailers of our products experience severe financial difficulty, some may become insolvent and cease business operations, which could negatively impact the sale of our products to consumers. If contract manufacturers of our products or other participants in our supply chain experience difficulty obtaining financing in the capital and credit markets to purchase raw materials or to finance capital equipment and other general working capital needs, it may result in delays or non-delivery of shipments of our products.
Our financial condition and results of operations have been, and could in the future be, adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
A novel strain of coronavirus (COVID-19) was first identified in Wuhan, China in December 2019, and subsequently declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization. The COVID-19 pandemic and preventative measures taken to contain or mitigate the pandemic have caused, and may in the future cause, business slowdown or shutdown in affected areas and significant disruption in the financial markets, both globally and in the United States. These events have led to and could again lead to adverse impacts to our global supply chain, factory cancellation costs, store closures, and a decline in retail traffic and discretionary spending by consumers and, in turn, materially impact our business, sales, financial condition and results of operations as well as cause a volatile effective tax rate driven by changes in the mix of earnings across our jurisdictions. We cannot predict whether, and to what degree, our sales, operations and financial results could in the future be affected by the pandemic and preventative measures. Risks presented by the COVID-19 pandemic include, but are not limited to:
•Deterioration in economic conditions in the United States and globally, including the effect of prolonged periods of inflation on our consumers and vendors;
•Disruption to our distribution centers, contract manufacturers, finished goods contract factories and other vendors, through the effects of facility closures, increased operating costs, reductions in operating hours, labor shortages, and real time changes in operating procedures, such as additional cleaning and disinfection procedures, which have had, and could in the future again have, a significant impact on our planned inventory production and distribution, including higher inventory levels or inventory shortages in various markets;
•Impacts to our distribution and logistics providers’ ability to operate, including labor and container shortages, and increases in their operating costs. These supply chain effects have had, and could in the future have, an adverse effect on our ability to meet consumer demand, including digital demand, and have in the past resulted in and could in the future result in extended inventory transit times and an increase in our costs of production and distribution, including increased freight and logistics costs and other expenses;
•Decreased retail traffic as a result of store closures, reduced operating hours, social distancing restrictions and/or changes in consumer behavior;
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•Reduced consumer demand for our products if consumers seek to reduce or delay discretionary spending in response to the impacts of COVID-19, including as a result of a rise in unemployment rates, higher costs of borrowing, inflation and diminished consumer confidence;
•Cancellation or postponement of sports seasons and sporting events in multiple countries, including in the United States, and bans on large public gatherings, which have reduced consumer spending on our products and could impact the effectiveness of our arrangements with key endorsers;
•The risk that any safety protocols in NIKE-owned or affiliated facilities, including our offices, will not be effective or not be perceived as effective, or that any virus-related illnesses will be linked or alleged to be linked to such facilities, whether accurate or not;
•Incremental costs resulting from the adoption of preventative measures and compliance with regulatory requirements, including providing facial coverings and hand sanitizer, rearranging operations to follow social distancing protocols, conducting temperature checks, COVID-19 testing and undertaking regular and thorough disinfecting of surfaces;
•Bankruptcies or other financial difficulties facing our wholesale customers, which could cause them to be unable to make or delay making payments to us, or result in revised payment terms, cancellation or reduction of their orders;
•Operational risk, including but not limited to cybersecurity risks, as a result of continued workforce remote work arrangements, and restrictions on employee travel; and
•Significant disruption of and volatility in global financial markets, which could have a negative impact on our ability to access capital in the future.
We continue to monitor the latest developments regarding the pandemic and have made certain assumptions regarding the pandemic for purposes of our operating, financial and tax planning projections, including assumptions regarding the duration and severity of the pandemic and the global macroeconomic impacts of the pandemic. However, we are unable to accurately predict the extent of the impact of the pandemic on our business, operations and financial condition due to the uncertainty of future developments. In particular, we believe the ultimate impacts on our business, results of operations, cash flows and financial condition will depend on, among other things, the further spread and duration of COVID-19, including emerging variant strains of COVID-19, the requirements to take action to help limit the spread of the illness, the impact of the easing of restrictions in various regions, the availability, widespread distribution and acceptance, as well as the safety and efficacy of vaccines for COVID-19 and the economic impacts of the pandemic. Even in those regions where we have experienced business recovery, should those regions fail to fully contain COVID-19 or suffer a COVID-19 relapse, those markets may not recover as quickly or at all, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. Additionally, COVID-19 related disruptions are making it more challenging to compare our performance, including our revenue growth and overall profitability, across quarters and fiscal years. The pandemic may also affect our business, results of operations or financial condition in a manner that is not presently known to us or that we currently do not consider to present significant risks.
In addition, the impact of COVID-19 may also exacerbate, or occur concurrently with, other risks discussed in this Item 1A. Risk Factors, any of which could have a material effect on us.
Our products, services and experiences face intense competition.
NIKE is a consumer products company and the relative popularity of various sports and fitness activities and changing design trends affect the demand for our products, services and experiences. The athletic footwear, apparel and equipment industry is highly competitive both in the United States and worldwide. We compete internationally with a significant number of athletic and leisure footwear companies, athletic and leisure apparel companies, sports equipment companies, private labels and large companies that have diversified lines of athletic and leisure footwear, apparel and equipment. We also compete with other companies for the production capacity of contract manufacturers that produce our products. In addition, we and our contract manufacturers compete with other companies and industries for raw materials used in our products. Our NIKE Direct operations, both through our digital commerce operations and retail stores, also compete with multi-brand retailers, which sell our products through their digital platforms and physical stores, and with digital commerce platforms. In addition, we compete with respect to the digital services and experiences we are able to offer our consumers, including fitness and activity apps; sport, fitness and wellness content and services; and digital services and features in retail stores that enhance the consumer experience.
Product offerings, technologies, marketing expenditures (including expenditures for advertising and endorsements), pricing, costs of production, customer service, digital commerce platforms, digital services and experiences and social media presence are areas of intense competition. These, in addition to ongoing rapid changes in technology, a reduction in barriers to the creation of new footwear and apparel companies and consumer preferences in the markets for athletic and leisure footwear, apparel, and equipment, services and experiences, constitute significant risk factors in our operations. In addition, the competitive nature of retail, including shifts in the ways in which consumers shop, and the continued proliferation of digital commerce, constitutes a risk factor implicating our NIKE Direct and wholesale operations. If we do not adequately and timely anticipate and respond to our
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competitors, our costs may increase, demand for our products may decline, possibly significantly, or we may need to reduce wholesale or suggested retail prices for our products.
Economic factors beyond our control, and changes in the global economic environment, including fluctuations in inflation and currency exchange rates, could result in lower revenues, higher costs and decreased margins and earnings.
A majority of our products are manufactured and sold outside of the United States, and we conduct purchase and sale transactions in various currencies, which creates exposure to the volatility of global economic conditions, including fluctuations in inflation and foreign currency exchange rates. Central banks may deploy various strategies to combat inflation, including increasing interest rates, which may impact our borrowing costs. Additionally, there has been, and may continue to be, volatility in currency exchange rates including as a result of U.S. policy changes and the Russia and Ukraine conflict that impact the U.S. Dollar value relative to other international currencies. Our international revenues and expenses generally are derived from sales and operations in foreign currencies, and these revenues and expenses could be affected by currency fluctuations, specifically amounts recorded in foreign currencies and translated into U.S. Dollars for consolidated financial reporting, as weakening of foreign currencies relative to the U.S. Dollar adversely affects the U.S. Dollar value of the Company's foreign currency-denominated sales and earnings. Currency exchange rate fluctuations could also disrupt the business of the independent manufacturers that produce our products by making their purchases of raw materials more expensive and more difficult to finance. Foreign currency fluctuations have adversely affected and could continue to have an adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.
We may hedge certain foreign currency exposures to lessen and delay, but not to completely eliminate, the effects of foreign currency fluctuations on our financial results. Since the hedging activities are designed to lessen volatility, they not only reduce the negative impact of a stronger U.S. Dollar or other trading currency, but they also reduce the positive impact of a weaker U.S. Dollar or other trading currency. Our future financial results could be significantly affected by the value of the U.S. Dollar in relation to the foreign currencies in which we conduct business. The degree to which our financial results are affected for any given time period will depend in part upon our hedging activities.
We may be adversely affected by the financial health of our customers.
We extend credit to our customers based on an assessment of a customer's financial condition, generally without requiring collateral. To assist in the scheduling of production and the shipping of our products, we offer certain customers the opportunity to place orders five to six months ahead of delivery under our futures ordering program. These advance orders may be canceled under certain conditions, and the risk of cancellation may increase when dealing with financially unstable retailers or retailers struggling with economic uncertainty. In the past, some customers have experienced financial difficulties up to and including bankruptcies, which have had an adverse effect on our sales, our ability to collect on receivables and our financial condition. When the retail economy weakens or as consumer behavior shifts, retailers may be more cautious with orders. A slowing or changing economy in our key markets could adversely affect the financial health of our customers, which in turn could have an adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition. In addition, product sales are dependent in part on high quality merchandising and an appealing retail environment to attract consumers, which requires continuing investments by retailers. Retailers that experience financial difficulties may fail to make such investments or delay them, resulting in lower sales and orders for our products. The ongoing financial uncertainty surrounding COVID-19, particularly for retailers, could also have an effect on our sales, our ability to collect on receivables and our financial condition.
Climate change and other sustainability-related matters, or legal, regulatory or market responses thereto, may have an adverse impact on our business and results of operations.
There are concerns that increased levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere have caused, and may continue to cause, potentially at a growing rate, increases in global temperatures, changes in weather patterns and increasingly frequent and/or prolonged extreme weather and climate events. Climate change may also exacerbate challenges relating to the availability and quality of water and raw materials, including those used in the production of our products, and may result in changes in regulations or consumer preferences, which could in turn affect our business, operating results and financial condition. For example, there has been increased focus by governmental and non-governmental organizations, consumers, customers, employees and other stakeholders on products that are sustainably made and other sustainability matters, including responsible sourcing and deforestation, the use of plastic, energy and water, the recyclability or recoverability of packaging and materials transparency, any of which may require us to incur increased costs for additional transparency, due diligence and reporting. In addition, federal, state or local governmental authorities in various countries have proposed, and are likely to continue to propose, legislative and regulatory initiatives to reduce or mitigate the impacts of climate change on the environment. Various countries and regions are following different approaches to the regulation of climate change, which could increase the complexity of, and potential cost related to complying with, such regulations. Any of the foregoing may require us to make additional investments in facilities and equipment, may impact the availability and cost of key raw materials used in the production of our products or the demand for our products, and, in turn, may adversely impact our business, operating results and financial condition.
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Although we have announced sustainability-related goals and targets, there can be no assurance that our stakeholders will agree with our strategies, and any perception, whether or not valid, that we have failed to achieve, or to act responsibly with respect to, such matters or to effectively respond to new or additional legal or regulatory requirements regarding climate change, could result in adverse publicity and adversely affect our business and reputation. Execution of these strategies and achievement of our goals is subject to risks and uncertainties, many of which are outside of our control. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, our ability to execute our strategies and achieve our goals within the currently projected costs and the expected timeframes; the availability and cost of raw materials and renewable energy; unforeseen production, design, operational and technological difficulties; the outcome of research efforts and future technology developments, including the ability to scale projects and technologies on a commercially competitive basis such as carbon sequestration and/or other related processes; compliance with, and changes or additions to, global and regional regulations, taxes, charges, mandates or requirements relating to greenhouse gas emissions, carbon costs or climate-related goals; adapting products to customer preferences and customer acceptance of sustainable supply chain solutions; and the actions of competitors and competitive pressures. As a result, there is no assurance that we will be able to successfully execute our strategies and achieve our sustainability-related goals, which could damage our reputation and customer and other stakeholder relationships and have an adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Extreme weather conditions and natural disasters could negatively impact our operating results and financial condition.
Given the broad and global scope of our operations, we are particularly vulnerable to the physical risks of climate change, such as shifts in weather patterns. Extreme weather conditions in the areas in which our retail stores, suppliers, manufacturers, customers, distribution centers, offices, headquarters and vendors are located could adversely affect our operating results and financial condition. Moreover, natural disasters such as earthquakes, hurricanes, wildfires and tsunamis, whether occurring in the United States or abroad, and their related consequences and effects, including energy shortages and public health issues, have in the past temporarily disrupted, and could in the future disrupt, our operations, the operations of our vendors, manufacturers and other suppliers or have in the past resulted in, and in the future could result in, economic instability that may negatively impact our operating results and financial condition. In particular, if a natural disaster or severe weather event were to occur in an area in which we or our suppliers, manufacturers, employees, customers, distribution centers and vendors are located, our continued success would depend, in part, on the safety and availability of the relevant personnel and facilities and proper functioning of our or third parties' computer, network, telecommunication and other systems and operations. In addition, a natural disaster or severe weather event could negatively impact retail traffic to our stores or stores that carry our products and could have an adverse impact on consumer spending, any of which could in turn result in negative point-of-sale trends for our merchandise. Further, climate change may increase both the frequency and severity of extreme weather conditions and natural disasters, which may affect our business operations, either in a particular region or globally, as well as the activities of our third-party vendors and other suppliers, manufacturers and customers. We believe the diversity of locations in which we operate, our operational size, disaster recovery and business continuity planning and our information technology systems and networks, including the Internet and third-party services (“Information Technology Systems”) position us well, but may not be sufficient for all or for concurrent eventualities. If we were to experience a local or regional disaster or other business continuity event or concurrent events, we could still experience operational challenges, in particular depending upon how a local or regional event may affect our human capital across our operations or with regard to particular aspects of our operations, such as key executive officers or personnel. For example, our World Headquarters are located in an active seismic zone, which is at a higher risk for earthquakes and the related consequences or effects. Further, if we are unable to find alternative suppliers, replace capacity at key manufacturing or distribution locations or quickly repair damage to our Information Technology Systems or supply systems, we could be late in delivering, or be unable to deliver, products to our customers. These events could result in reputational damage, lost sales, cancellation charges or markdowns, all of which could have an adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Business and Operational Risks
Failure to maintain our reputation, brand image and culture could negatively impact our business.
Our iconic brands have worldwide recognition, and our success depends on our ability to maintain and enhance our brand image and reputation. Maintaining, promoting and growing our brands will depend on our design and marketing efforts, including advertising and consumer campaigns, product innovation and product quality. Our commitment to product innovation, quality and sustainability, and our continuing investment in design (including materials), marketing and sustainability measures may not have the desired impact on our brand image and reputation. In addition, our success in maintaining, extending and expanding our brand image depends on our ability to adapt to a rapidly changing media and digital environment, including our increasing reliance on social media and digital dissemination of advertising campaigns on our digital platforms and through our digital experiences and products. We could be adversely impacted if we fail to achieve any of these objectives.
Our brand value also depends on our ability to maintain a positive consumer perception of our corporate integrity, purpose and brand culture. Negative claims or publicity involving us, our culture and values, our products, services and experiences, consumer data, or any of our key employees, endorsers, sponsors or suppliers could seriously damage our reputation and brand image, regardless of whether such claims are accurate. For example, while we require our suppliers of our products to operate
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their business in compliance with applicable laws and regulations, we do not control their practices. Negative publicity relating to a violation or an alleged violation of policies or laws by such suppliers could damage our brand image and diminish consumer trust in our brand. Further, our reputation and brand image could be damaged as a result of our support of, association with or lack of support or disapproval of certain social causes, as well as any decisions we make to continue to conduct, or change, certain of our activities in response to such considerations. Social media, which accelerates and potentially amplifies the scope of negative publicity, can increase the challenges of responding to negative claims. Adverse publicity about regulatory or legal action against us, or by us, could also damage our reputation and brand image, undermine consumer confidence in us and reduce long-term demand for our products, even if the regulatory or legal action is unfounded or not material to our operations. If the reputation, culture or image of any of our brands is tarnished or if we receive negative publicity, then our sales, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.
Our business is affected by seasonality, which could result in fluctuations in our operating results.
We experience moderate fluctuations in aggregate sales volume during the year. Historically, revenues in the first and fourth fiscal quarters have slightly exceeded those in the second and third fiscal quarters. However, the mix of product sales may vary considerably from time to time or in the future as a result of strategic shifts in our business, changes in COVID-19 related cancellations or postponements and seasonal or geographic demand for particular types of footwear, apparel and equipment and in connection with the timing, cancellation or postponement of significant sporting events, such as the NBA Finals, Olympics or the World Cup, among others. In addition, our customers may cancel orders, change delivery schedules or change the mix of products ordered with minimal notice. As a result, we may not be able to accurately predict our quarterly sales. Accordingly, our results of operations are likely to fluctuate significantly from period to period. This seasonality, along with other factors that are beyond our control, including economic conditions, changes in consumer preferences, weather conditions, outbreaks of disease, social or political unrest, availability of import quotas, transportation disruptions and currency exchange rate fluctuations, could adversely affect our business and cause our results of operations to fluctuate. Our operating margins are also sensitive to a number of additional factors that are beyond our control, including manufacturing and transportation costs, shifts in product sales mix and geographic sales trends, all of which we expect to continue. Results of operations in any period should not be considered indicative of the results to be expected for any future period.
If we are unable to anticipate consumer preferences and develop new products, we may not be able to maintain or increase our revenues and profits.
Our success depends on our ability to identify, originate and define product trends as well as to anticipate, gauge and react to changing consumer demands in a timely manner. However, lead times for many of our products may make it more difficult for us to respond rapidly to new or changing product trends or consumer preferences. All of our products are subject to changing consumer preferences that cannot be predicted with certainty. Our new products may not receive consumer acceptance as consumer preferences could shift rapidly to different types of performance products or away from these types of products altogether, and our future success depends in part on our ability to anticipate and respond to these changes. If we fail to anticipate accurately and respond to trends and shifts in consumer preferences by adjusting the mix of existing product offerings, developing new products, designs, styles and categories, and influencing sports and fitness preferences through extensive marketing, we could experience lower sales, excess inventories or lower profit margins, any of which could have an adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition. In addition, we market our products globally through a diverse spectrum of advertising and promotional programs and campaigns, including social media, mobile applications and online advertising. If we do not successfully market our products or if advertising and promotional costs increase, these factors could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We rely on technical innovation and high-quality products to compete in the market for our products.
Technical innovation and quality control in the design and manufacturing processes of footwear, apparel, equipment and other products and services are essential to the commercial success of our products and development of new products. Research and development play a key role in technical innovation. We rely upon specialists in the fields of biomechanics, chemistry, exercise physiology, engineering, digital technologies, industrial design, sustainability and related fields, as well as research committees and advisory boards made up of athletes, coaches, trainers, equipment managers, orthopedists, podiatrists and other experts to develop and test cutting-edge performance products. While we strive to produce products that help to enhance athletic performance and reduce injury and maximize comfort, if we fail to introduce technical innovation in our products, consumer demand for our products could decline, and if we experience problems with the quality of our products, we may incur substantial expense to remedy the problems and loss of consumer confidence.
Failure to continue to obtain or maintain high-quality endorsers of our products could harm our business.
We establish relationships with professional athletes, sports teams and leagues, as well as other public figures, including artists, designers and influencers, to develop, evaluate and promote our products, as well as establish product authenticity with consumers. However, as competition in our industry has increased, the costs associated with establishing and retaining such sponsorships and other relationships have increased. If we are unable to maintain our current associations with professional athletes, sports teams and leagues, or other public figures, or to do so at a reasonable cost, we could lose the high visibility or
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on-field authenticity associated with our products, and we may be required to modify and substantially increase our marketing investments. As a result, our brands, net revenues, expenses and profitability could be harmed.
Furthermore, if certain endorsers were to stop using our products contrary to their endorsement agreements, our business could be adversely affected. In addition, actions taken or statements made by athletes, teams or leagues, or other endorsers, associated with our products or brand that harm the reputations of those athletes, teams or leagues, or endorsers, could also seriously harm our brand image with consumers and, as a result, could have an adverse effect on our sales and financial condition. In addition, poor or non-performance by our endorsers, a failure to continue to correctly identify promising athletes, public figures or sports organizations, to use and endorse our products and brand or a failure to enter into cost-effective endorsement arrangements with prominent athletes, public figures and sports organizations could adversely affect our brand, sales and profitability.
Failure to accurately forecast consumer demand could lead to excess inventories or inventory shortages, which could result in decreased operating margins, reduced cash flows and harm to our business.
To meet anticipated demand for our products, we purchase products from manufacturers outside of our futures ordering program and in advance of customer orders, which we hold in inventory and resell to customers. There is a risk we may be unable to sell excess products ordered from manufacturers. Inventory levels in excess of customer demand may result in inventory write-downs, and the sale of excess inventory at discounted prices could significantly impair our brand image and have an adverse effect on our operating results, financial condition and cash flows. Conversely, if we underestimate consumer demand for our products or if our manufacturers fail to supply products we require at the time we need them, we may experience inventory shortages. Inventory shortages could delay shipments to customers, negatively impact retailer, distributor and consumer relationships and diminish brand loyalty. The difficulty in forecasting demand also makes it difficult to estimate our future results of operations, financial condition and cash flows from period to period. A failure to accurately predict the level of demand for our products could adversely affect our net revenues and net income, and we are unlikely to forecast such effects with any certainty in advance.
Our NIKE Direct operations have required and will continue to require a substantial investment and commitment of resources and are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties.
Our NIKE Direct operations, including our retail stores and digital platforms, have required and will continue to require significant investment. Our NIKE Direct stores have required and will continue to require substantial fixed investment in equipment and leasehold improvements and personnel. We have entered into substantial operating lease commitments for retail space. Certain stores have been designed and built to serve as high-profile venues to promote brand awareness and marketing activities and to integrate with our digital platforms. Because of their unique design and technological elements, locations and size, these stores require substantially more investment than other stores. Due to the high fixed-cost structure associated with our NIKE Direct retail stores, a decline in sales, a shift in consumer behavior away from brick-and-mortar retail, or the closure, temporary or otherwise, or poor performance of individual or multiple stores could result in significant lease termination costs, write-offs of equipment and leasehold improvements and employee-related costs.
Many factors unique to retail operations, some of which are beyond our control, pose risks and uncertainties. Risks include, but are not limited to: credit card fraud; mismanagement of existing retail channel partners; and inability to manage costs associated with store construction and operation.
In addition, we have made significant investments in digital technologies and information systems for the digital aspect of our NIKE Direct operations, and our digital offerings will require continued investment in the development and upgrading of our technology platforms.In order to deliver high-quality digital experiences, our digital platforms must be designed effectively and work well with a range of other technologies, systems, networks, and standards that we do not control. We may not be successful in developing platforms that operate effectively with these technologies, systems, networks or standards. A growing portion of consumers access our NIKE Direct digital platforms, but in the event that it is more difficult for consumers to access and use our digital platforms, consumers find that our digital platforms do not effectively meet their needs or expectations or consumers choose not to access or use our digital platforms or use devices that do not offer access to our platforms, the success of our NIKE Direct operations could be adversely impacted. Our competitors may develop, or have already developed, digital experiences, features, content, services or technologies that are similar to ours or that achieve greater acceptance.
We may not realize a satisfactory return on our investment in our NIKE Direct operations and management's attention from our other business opportunities could be diverted, which could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.
If the technology-based systems that give our consumers the ability to shop or interact with us online do not function effectively, our operating results, as well as our ability to grow our digital commerce business globally or to retain our customer base, could be materially adversely affected.
Many of our consumers shop with us through our digital platforms. Increasingly, consumers are using mobile-based devices and applications to shop online with us and with our competitors, and to do comparison shopping, as well as to engage with us and our competitors through digital services and experiences that are offered on mobile platforms. We are increasingly using social
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media and proprietary mobile applications to interact with our consumers and as a means to enhance their shopping experience. Any failure on our part to provide attractive, effective, reliable, secure, user-friendly digital commerce platforms that offer a wide assortment of merchandise with rapid delivery options and that continually meet the changing expectations of online shoppers or any failure to provide attractive digital experiences to our customers could place us at a competitive disadvantage, result in the loss of digital commerce and other sales, harm our reputation with consumers, have a material adverse impact on the growth of our digital commerce business globally and have a material adverse impact on our business and results of operations. In addition, as use of our digital platforms continues to grow, we will need an increasing amount of technical infrastructure to continue to satisfy our consumers' needs. If we fail to continue to effectively scale and adapt our digital platforms to accommodate increased consumer demand, our business may be subject to interruptions, delays or failures and consumer demand for our products and digital experiences could decline.
Risks specific to our digital commerce business also include diversion of sales from our and our retailers' brick and mortar stores, difficulty in recreating the in-store experience through direct channels and liability for online content. Our failure to successfully respond to these risks might adversely affect sales in our digital commerce business, as well as damage our reputation and brands.
We rely significantly on information technology to operate our business, including our supply chain and retail operations, and any failure, inadequacy or interruption of that technology could harm our ability to effectively operate our business.
We are heavily dependent on Information Technology Systems, across our supply chain, including product design, production, forecasting, ordering, manufacturing, transportation, sales and distribution, as well as for processing financial information for external and internal reporting purposes, retail operations and other business activities. Information Technology Systems are critical to many of our operating activities and our business processes and may be negatively impacted by any service interruption or shutdown. For example, our ability to effectively manage and maintain our inventory and to ship products to customers on a timely basis depends significantly on the reliability of these Information Technology Systems. Over a number of years, we have implemented Information Technology Systems in all of the geographical regions in which we operate. Our work to integrate, secure and enhance these systems and related processes in our global operations is ongoing and NIKE will continue to invest in these efforts. We cannot provide assurance, however, that the measures we take to secure and enhance these systems will be sufficient to protect our Information Technology Systems and prevent cyber-attacks, system failures or data or information loss. The failure of these systems to operate effectively, including as a result of security breaches, viruses, hackers, malware, natural disasters, vendor business interruptions or other causes, failure to properly maintain, protect, repair or upgrade systems, or problems with transitioning to upgraded or replacement systems could cause delays in product fulfillment and reduced efficiency of our operations, could require significant capital investments to remediate the problem which may not be sufficient to cover all eventualities, and may have an adverse effect on our reputation, results of operations and financial condition. In addition, the increased use of employee-owned devices for communications as well as work-from-home arrangements, such as those implemented in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, present additional operational risks to our Information Technology Systems, including, but not limited to, increased risks of cyber-attacks. Further, like other companies in the retail industry, we have in the past experienced, and we expect to continue to experience, cyber-attacks, including phishing, and other attempts to breach, or gain unauthorized access to, our systems. To date, these attacks have not had a material impact on our operations, but we cannot provide assurance that they will not have an impact in the future.
We also use Information Technology Systems to process financial information and results of operations for internal reporting purposes and to comply with regulatory financial reporting, legal and tax requirements. If Information Technology Systems suffer severe damage, disruption or shutdown and our business continuity plans, or those of our vendors, do not effectively resolve the issues in a timely manner, we could experience delays in reporting our financial results, which could result in lost revenues and profits, as well as reputational damage. Furthermore, we depend on Information Technology Systems and personal data collection for digital marketing, digital commerce, consumer engagement and the marketing and use of our digital products and services. We also rely on our ability to engage in electronic communications throughout the world between and among our employees as well as with other third parties, including customers, suppliers, vendors and consumers. Any interruption in Information Technology Systems may impede our ability to engage in the digital space and result in lost revenues, damage to our reputation, and loss of users.
We are subject to the risk our licensees may not generate expected sales or maintain the value of our brands.
We currently license, and expect to continue licensing, certain of our proprietary rights, such as trademarks or copyrighted material, to third parties. If our licensees fail to successfully market and sell licensed products, or fail to obtain sufficient capital or effectively manage their business operations, customer relationships, labor relationships, supplier relationships or credit risks, it could adversely affect our revenues, both directly from reduced royalties received and indirectly from reduced sales of our other products.
We also rely on our licensees to help preserve the value of our brands. Although we attempt to protect our brands through approval rights over the design, production processes, quality, packaging, merchandising, distribution, advertising and promotion
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of our licensed products, we cannot completely control the use of our licensed brands by our licensees. The misuse of a brand by or negative publicity involving a licensee could have a material adverse effect on that brand and on us.
Consolidation of retailers or concentration of retail market share among a few retailers may increase and concentrate our credit risk and impair our ability to sell products.
The athletic footwear, apparel and equipment retail markets in some countries are dominated by a few large athletic footwear, apparel and equipment retailers with many stores and accelerating digital commerce capabilities. The market shares of these retailers may increase through acquisitions and construction of additional stores and investments in digital capacity, and as a result of attrition as struggling retailers exit the market. Consolidation of our retailers will concentrate our credit risk with a smaller set of retailers, any of whom may experience declining sales or a shortage of liquidity, including as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, increasing market share concentration among a few retailers in a particular country or region increases the risk that if any one of them substantially reduces their purchases of our products, we may be unable to find sufficient retail outlets for our products to sustain the same level of sales and revenues.
If one or more of our counterparty financial institutions default on their obligations to us or fail, we may incur significant losses.
As part of our hedging activities, we enter into transactions involving derivative financial instruments, which may include forward contracts, commodity futures contracts, option contracts, collars and swaps with various financial institutions. In addition, we have significant amounts of cash, cash equivalents and other investments on deposit or in accounts with banks or other financial institutions in the United States and abroad. As a result, we are exposed to the risk of default by or failure of counterparty financial institutions. The risk of counterparty default or failure may be heightened during economic downturns and periods of uncertainty in the financial markets. If one of our counterparties were to become insolvent or file for bankruptcy, our ability to recover losses incurred as a result of default, or our assets deposited or held in accounts with such counterparty, may be limited by the counterparty's liquidity or the applicable laws governing the insolvency or bankruptcy proceedings. In the event of default or failure of one or more of our counterparties, we could incur significant losses, which could negatively impact our results of operations and financial condition.
We rely on a concentrated source base of contract manufacturers to supply a significant portion of our footwear products.
As of May 31, 2022, we were supplied by 120 finished goods footwear contract factories located in 11 countries. We rely upon contract manufacturers, which we do not own or operate, to manufacture all of the footwear products we sell. For fiscal 2022, four footwear contract manufacturers each accounted for greater than 10% of footwear production and in the aggregate accounted for approximately 58% of NIKE Brand footwear production. Our ability to meet our customers' needs depends on our ability to maintain a steady supply of products from our contract manufacturers. If one or more of our significant suppliers were to sever their relationship with us or significantly alter the terms of our relationship, including due to changes in applicable trade policies, or be unable to perform, including as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, we may not be able to obtain replacement products in a timely manner, which could have a material adverse effect on our business operations, sales, financial condition or results of operations. Additionally, if any of our primary footwear contract manufacturers fail to make timely shipments, do not meet our quality standards or otherwise fail to deliver us product in accordance with our plans, there could be a material adverse effect on our results of operations.
Certain of our footwear contract manufacturers are highly specialized and only produce a specific type of product. Such contract manufacturers may go out of business if consumer preferences or market conditions change such that there is no longer sufficient demand for the types of products they produce. If, in the future, the relevant products are again in demand and the specialized contract manufacturers no longer exist, we may not be able to locate replacement facilities to manufacture certain footwear products in a timely manner or at all, which could have a material adverse effect on our sales, financial condition or results of operations.
The market for prime real estate is competitive.
Our ability to effectively obtain real estate to open new retail stores and otherwise conduct our operations, both domestically and internationally, depends on the availability of real estate that meets our criteria for traffic, square footage, co-tenancies, lease economics, demographics and other factors. We also must be able to effectively renew our existing real estate leases. In addition, from time to time, we seek to downsize, consolidate, reposition or close some of our real estate locations, which may require modification of an existing lease. Failure to secure adequate new locations or successfully modify leases for existing locations, or failure to effectively manage the profitability of our existing fleet of retail stores, could have an adverse effect on our operating results and financial condition.
Additionally, the economic environment may make it difficult to determine the fair market rent of real estate properties domestically and internationally. This could impact the quality of our decisions to exercise lease options at previously negotiated rents and to renew expiring leases at negotiated rents. Any adverse effect on the quality of these decisions could impact our ability to retain real estate locations adequate to meet our targets or efficiently manage the profitability of our existing fleet of stores, which could have an adverse effect on our operating results and financial condition.
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The success of our business depends, in part, on high-quality employees, including key personnel as well as our ability to maintain our workplace culture and values.
Our success depends in part on the continued service of high-quality employees, including key executive officers and personnel. The loss of the services of key individuals, or any negative perception with respect to these individuals, or our workplace culture or values, could harm our business. Our success also depends on our ability to recruit, retain and engage our personnel sufficiently, both to maintain our current business and to execute our strategic initiatives. Competition for employees in our industry is intense and we may not be successful in attracting and retaining such personnel. Changes to our current and future office environments or adoption of a new work model that expects employees to work on-site for a specified number of days with some flexibility to work remotely on other days, may not meet the needs or expectations of our employees or may not be perceived as favorable compared to other companies' policies, which could negatively impact our ability to attract, hire and retain our employees. In addition, shifts in U.S. immigration policy could negatively impact our ability to attract, hire and retain highly skilled employees who are from outside the United States. We also believe that our corporate culture has been a key driver of our success, and we have invested substantial time and resources in building, maintaining and evolving our culture. Any failure to preserve and evolve our culture could negatively affect our future success, including our ability to retain and recruit employees.
Our business operations and financial performance could be adversely affected by changes in our relationship with our workforce or changes to United States or foreign employment regulations.
We have significant exposure to changes in domestic and foreign laws governing our relationships with our workforce, including wage and hour laws and regulations, fair labor standards, minimum wage requirements, overtime pay, unemployment tax rates, workers' compensation rates, citizenship requirements and payroll taxes, which could have a direct impact on our operating costs. A significant increase in minimum wage or overtime rates in countries where we have workforce could have a significant impact on our operating costs and may require that we relocate those operations or take other steps to mitigate such increases, all of which may cause us to incur additional costs. There is also a risk of potential claims that we have violated laws related to discrimination and harassment, health and safety, wage and hour laws, criminal activity, personal injury and other claims. In addition, if there were a significant increase in the number of members of our workforce who are members of labor organizations or become parties to collective bargaining agreements, we could be vulnerable to a strike, work stoppage or other labor action, which could have an adverse effect on our business.
Risks Related to Operating a Global Business
Our international operations involve inherent risks which could result in harm to our business.
Virtually all of our athletic footwear and apparel is manufactured outside of the United States, and the majority of our products are sold outside of the United States. Accordingly, we are subject to the risks generally associated with global trade and doing business abroad, which include foreign laws and regulations, varying consumer preferences across geographic regions, political tensions, unrest, disruptions or delays in cross-border shipments and changes in economic conditions in countries in which our products are manufactured or where we sell products. Changes in the U.S. government's import and export policies, including trade restrictions, sanctions and countersanctions, increased tariffs or quotas, embargoes, safeguards or customs restrictions, could require us to change the way we conduct business and adversely affect our results of operations.
In addition, disease outbreaks, including the recent COVID-19 pandemic, terrorist acts and military conflict have increased the risks of doing business abroad. These factors, among others, could affect our ability to manufacture products or procure materials, or our costs for manufacturing and procuring materials, our ability to import products, our ability to sell products in international markets and our cost of doing business. If any of these or other factors make the conduct of business in a particular country undesirable or impractical, our business could be adversely affected. In addition, many of our imported products are subject to duties, tariffs or quotas that affect the cost and quantity of various types of goods imported into the United States and other countries. Any country in which our products are produced or sold may eliminate, adjust or impose new quotas, duties, tariffs, safeguard measures, anti-dumping duties, cargo restrictions to prevent terrorism, restrictions on the transfer of currency, climate change legislation, product safety regulations or other charges or restrictions, any of which could have an adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.
Furthermore, we are subject to the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act as well as the anti-corruption laws of other countries in which we operate. Although we implement policies and procedures designed to promote compliance with these laws, our employees, independent contractors, contract manufacturers, suppliers and agents, as well as those companies to which we outsource certain of our business operations, may take actions in violation of our policies. Any such violation could result in sanctions or other penalties and have an adverse effect on our business, reputation and operating results.
Our products are subject to risks associated with overseas sourcing, manufacturing and financing.
The principal materials used in our footwear products — natural and synthetic rubber, plastic compounds, foam cushioning materials, natural and synthetic leather, nylon, polyester and natural fiber textiles and polyurethane films — are locally available to manufacturers. The principal materials used in our apparel products — natural and synthetic fabrics, yarns and threads (both virgin and recycled), specialized performance fabrics designed to efficiently wick moisture away from the body, retain heat and repel rain and/or snow as well as plastic and metal hardware — are also available in countries where our manufacturing takes
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place. Both our apparel and footwear products are dependent upon the ability of our contract manufacturers to locate, train, employ and retain adequate personnel. NIKE contract manufacturers and materials suppliers buy raw materials and are subject to wage rates and other labor standards that are oftentimes regulated by the governments of the countries in which our products are manufactured.
There could be a significant disruption in the supply of fabrics or raw materials from current sources or, in the event of a disruption or heightened competition for such materials, our contract manufacturers might not be able to locate alternative suppliers of materials of comparable quality at an acceptable price or at all. Further, our contract manufacturers have experienced and may continue to experience in the future, unexpected closures, unexpected increases in work wages or other changes in labor standards, whether government mandated or otherwise, and increases in compliance costs due to governmental regulation concerning certain metals, fabrics or raw materials used in the manufacturing of our products. In addition, we cannot be certain that manufacturers that we do not contract and that we refer to as "unaffiliated manufacturers" will be able to fill our orders in a timely manner. If we experience significant increases in demand, or reductions in the availability of materials, or need to replace an existing contract manufacturer or materials supplier, there can be no assurance additional supplies of fabrics or raw materials or additional manufacturing capacity will be available when required on terms acceptable to us, or at all, or that any contract manufacturer, unaffiliated manufacturer, or any materials supplier would allocate sufficient capacity to us in order to meet our requirements. In addition, even if we are able to expand existing or find new manufacturing capacity or sources of materials, we may encounter delays in production and added costs as a result of the time it takes to train suppliers and manufacturers in our methods, products, quality control standards and labor, health and safety standards. Any delays, interruption or increased costs in labor or wages, in the supply of materials or in the manufacturing of our products could have an adverse effect on our ability to meet retail customer and consumer demand for our products and result in lower revenues and net income both in the short- and long-term.
Because contract manufacturers make a majority of our products outside of our principal sales markets, our products must be transported by third parties over large geographic distances. Delays in the shipment or delivery of our products due to the availability of transportation, container shortages, labor shortages, including work stoppages or port strikes, infrastructure and port congestion or other factors, and costs and delays associated with consolidating or transitioning between manufacturers, have adversely impacted, and could in the future adversely impact the availability of our products and, in turn, our financial performance. In addition, delays in the shipment or delivery of our products, manufacturing delays or unexpected demand for our products have required us, and may in the future require us to use faster, but more expensive, transportation methods such as air freight, which could adversely affect our profit margins. The cost of oil is a significant component in manufacturing and transportation costs, so increases in the price of petroleum products can adversely affect our profit margins. Changes in U.S. trade policies, including modifications to import tariffs and existing trade policies and agreements, have also had, and could continue to have a significant impact on our activities in foreign jurisdictions, and could adversely affect our reputation or results of operations.
Our success depends on our global distribution facilities.
We distribute our products to customers directly from the factory and through distribution centers located throughout the world. Our ability to meet customer expectations, manage inventory, complete sales and achieve objectives for operating efficiencies and growth, particularly in emerging markets, depends on the proper operation of our distribution facilities, the development or expansion of additional distribution capabilities and the timely performance of services by third parties (including those involved in shipping product to and from our distribution facilities). Our distribution facilities have in the past and could be interrupted by information technology problems, disasters such as earthquakes or fires or outbreaks of disease or government actions taken to mitigate their spread. Any significant failure in our distribution facilities could result in an adverse effect on our business. We maintain business interruption insurance, but it may not adequately protect us from adverse effects caused by significant disruptions in our distribution facilities.
Legal, Regulatory, and Compliance Risks
We are subject to a complex array of laws and regulations and litigation and other legal and regulatory proceedings, which could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
As a multinational corporation with operations and distribution channels throughout the world, we are subject to and must comply with extensive laws and regulations in the United States and other jurisdictions in which we have operations and distribution channels. If we or our employees, agents, suppliers, and other partners fail to comply with any of these laws or regulations, such failure could subject us to fines, sanctions or other penalties that could negatively affect our reputation, business, financial condition and results of operations. Furthermore, laws, regulations and policies and the interpretation of such, can conflict among jurisdictions and compliance in one jurisdiction may result in legal or reputational risks in another jurisdiction. We are involved in various types of claims, lawsuits, regulatory proceedings and government investigations relating to our business, our products and the actions of our employees and representatives, including contractual and employment relationships, product liability, antitrust, trademark rights and a variety of other matters. It is not possible to predict with certainty the outcome of any such legal or regulatory proceedings or investigations, and we could in the future incur judgments, fines or penalties, or enter into settlements of lawsuits and claims that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of
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operations and negatively impact our reputation. The global nature of our business means legal and compliance risks, such as anti-bribery, anti-corruption, fraud, trade, environmental, competition, privacy and other regulatory matters, will continue to exist and additional legal proceedings and other contingencies have and will continue to arise from time to time, which could adversely affect us. In addition, the adoption of new laws or regulations, or changes in the interpretation of existing laws or regulations, may result in significant unanticipated legal and reputational risks. Moreover, the regulation of certain transactions we engage in, including those involving non-fungible tokens ("NFTs") and cryptocurrencies, remains in an early stage and subject to significant uncertainty. As a result, we are required to exercise our judgment as to whether or how certain laws or regulations apply, or may in the future apply, and it is possible that legislators, regulators and courts may disagree with our conclusions. Any current or future legal or regulatory proceedings could divert management's attention from our operations and result in substantial legal fees.
Changes to U.S. or other countries' trade policies and tariff and import/export regulations or our failure to comply with such regulations may have a material adverse effect on our reputation, business, financial condition and results of operations.
Changes in U.S. or international social, political, regulatory and economic conditions could impact our business, reputation, financial condition and results of operations. In particular, political and economic instability, geopolitical conflicts, political unrest, civil strife, terrorist activity, acts of war, public corruption, expropriation, nationalism and other economic or political uncertainties in the United States or internationally could interrupt and negatively affect the sale of our products or other business operations. Any negative sentiment toward the United States as a result of any such changes could also adversely affect our business.
In addition, changes in laws and policies governing foreign trade, manufacturing, development and investment in the territories or countries where we currently sell our products or conduct our business could adversely affect our business. U.S. presidential administrations have instituted or proposed changes in trade policies that include the negotiation or termination of trade agreements, the imposition of higher tariffs on imports into the U.S., economic sanctions on individuals, corporations or countries, and other government regulations affecting trade between the U.S. and other countries where we conduct our business. It may be time-consuming and expensive for us to alter our business operations in order to adapt to or comply with any such changes.
Changes or proposed changes in U.S. or other countries' trade policies may result in restrictions and economic disincentives on international trade. Tariffs and other changes in U.S. trade policy have in the past and could in the future trigger retaliatory actions by affected countries, and certain foreign governments have instituted or are considering imposing retaliatory measures on certain U.S. goods. Further, any emerging protectionist or nationalist trends either in the United States or in other countries could affect the trade environment. The Company, similar to many other multinational corporations, does a significant amount of business that would be impacted by changes to the trade policies of the United States and foreign countries (including governmental action related to tariffs, international trade agreements, or economic sanctions). Such changes have the potential to adversely impact the U.S. economy or certain sectors thereof or the economy of another country in which we conduct operations, our industry and the global demand for our products, and as a result, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Failure to adequately protect or enforce our intellectual property rights could adversely affect our business.
We periodically discover counterfeit reproductions of our products or products that otherwise infringe our intellectual property rights. If we are unsuccessful in enforcing our intellectual property rights, continued sales of these products could adversely affect our sales and our brand and could result in a shift of consumer preference away from our products.
The actions we take to establish and protect our intellectual property rights may not be adequate to prevent imitation of our products by others. We also may be unable to prevent others from seeking to block sales of our products as violations of proprietary rights.
We may be subject to liability if third parties successfully claim we infringe their intellectual property rights. Defending infringement claims could be expensive and time-consuming and might result in our entering into costly license agreements. We also may be subject to significant damages or injunctions against development, manufacturing, use, importation and/or sale of certain products.
We take various actions to prevent the unauthorized use and/or disclosure of our confidential information and intellectual property rights. These actions include contractual measures such as entering into non-disclosure and non-compete agreements and agreements relating to our collaborations with third parties and providing confidential information awareness training. Our controls and efforts to prevent unauthorized use and/or disclosure of confidential information and intellectual property rights might not always be effective. For example, confidential information related to business strategy, innovations, new technologies, mergers and acquisitions, unpublished financial results or personal data could be prematurely, inadvertently, or improperly used and/or disclosed, resulting in a loss of reputation, loss of intellectual property rights, a decline in our stock price and/or a negative impact on our market position, and could lead to damages, fines, penalties or injunctions. In addition, new products we offer, such as NFTs, may raise various novel intellectual property law considerations, including adequacy and scope of assignment, licensing, transfer, copyright and other right-of-use issues.
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In addition, the laws of certain countries may not protect or allow enforcement of intellectual property rights to the same extent as the laws of the United States. We may face significant expenses and liability in connection with the protection of our intellectual property rights, including outside the United States, and if we are unable to successfully protect our rights or resolve intellectual property conflicts with others, our business or financial condition may be adversely affected.
We are subject to data security and privacy risks that could negatively affect our results, operations or reputation.
In addition to our own sensitive and proprietary business information, we handle transactional and personal information about our wholesale customers and consumers and users of our digital experiences, which include online distribution channels and product engagement, adaptive products and personal fitness applications. Hackers and data thieves are increasingly sophisticated and operate social engineering, such as phishing, and large-scale, complex automated attacks that can evade detection for long periods of time. Any breach of our or our service providers' networks, or other vendor systems, may result in the loss of confidential business and financial data, misappropriation of our consumers', users' or employees' personal information or a disruption of our business. Any of these outcomes could have a material adverse effect on our business, including unwanted media attention, impairment of our consumer and customer relationships, damage to our reputation; resulting in lost sales and consumers, fines, lawsuits, or significant legal and remediation expenses. We also may need to expend significant resources to protect against, respond to and/or redress problems caused by any breach.
In addition, we must comply with increasingly complex and rigorous, and sometimes conflicting, regulatory standards enacted to protect business and personal data in the United States, Europe and elsewhere. For example, the European Union adopted the General Data Protection Regulation (the “GDPR”), which became effective on May 25, 2018; five states in the United States (California, Virginia, Colorado, Utah, and Connecticut) passed data privacy laws in 2020 and 2021; China enacted the Data Security Law and Personal Information Protection Law, which became effective on September 1, 2021 and November 1, 2021, respectively, and additional jurisdictions have adopted or are considering proposing or adopting similar regulations. These laws impose additional obligations on companies regarding the handling of personal data and provide certain individual privacy rights to persons whose data is stored. Compliance with existing, proposed and recently enacted laws and regulations (including implementation of the privacy and process enhancements called for under laws in the European Union, United States and China) can be costly and time consuming, and any failure to comply with these regulatory standards could subject us to legal and reputational risks. Misuse of or failure to secure personal information could also result in violation of data privacy laws and regulations, proceedings against the Company by governmental entities or others, imposition of fines by governmental authorities and damage to our reputation and credibility and could have a negative impact on revenues and profits.
We could be subject to changes in tax rates, adoption of new tax laws, additional tax liabilities or increased volatility in our effective tax rate.
We earn a substantial portion of our income in foreign countries and, as such, we are subject to the tax laws in the United States and numerous foreign jurisdictions. Current economic and political conditions make tax laws and regulations, or their interpretation and application, in any jurisdiction subject to significant change.
Proposals to reform U.S. and foreign tax laws could significantly impact how U.S. multinational corporations are taxed on foreign earnings and could increase the U.S. corporate tax rate. Although we cannot predict whether or in what form these proposals will pass, several of the proposals considered, if enacted into law, could have an adverse impact on our effective tax rate, income tax expense and cash flows.
Portions of our operations are subject to a reduced tax rate or are under various tax holidays. We also utilize tax rulings and other agreements to obtain certainty in treatment of certain tax matters. These holidays expire from time to time and may be extended when certain conditions are met, or terminated if certain conditions are not met. The impact of any changes in conditions would be the loss of certainty in treatment thus potentially impacting our effective income tax rate. For example, in January 2019, the European Commission opened a formal investigation to examine whether the Netherlands has breached State Aid rules when granting certain tax rulings to the Company. If this matter is adversely resolved, the Netherlands may be required to assess additional amounts with respect to prior periods, and the Company's income taxes related to prior periods in the Netherlands could increase.
We are also subject to the examination of our tax returns by the United States Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) and other tax authorities. We regularly assess the likelihood of an adverse outcome resulting from these examinations to determine the adequacy of its provision for income taxes. Although we believe our tax provisions are adequate, the final determination of tax audits and any related disputes could be materially different from our historical income tax provisions and accruals. The results of audits or related disputes could have an adverse effect on our financial statements for the period or periods for which the applicable final determinations are made. For example, we and our subsidiaries are also engaged in a number of intercompany transactions across multiple tax jurisdictions. Although we believe we have clearly reflected the economics of these transactions and the proper local transfer pricing documentation is in place, tax authorities may propose and sustain adjustments that could result in changes that may impact our mix of earnings in countries with differing statutory tax rates.
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Failure of our contractors or our licensees' contractors to comply with our code of conduct, local laws and other standards could harm our business.
We have license agreements that permit independent parties to manufacture or contract for the manufacture of products using our intellectual property. We require the contractors that directly manufacture our products and our licensees that make products using our intellectual property (including, indirectly, their contract manufacturers) to comply with a code of conduct and other environmental, human rights, health and safety standards for the benefit of workers. We also require our contract manufacturers and the contractors of our licensees to comply with applicable standards for product safety. Notwithstanding their contractual obligations, from time to time contractors may not comply with such standards or applicable local law or our licensees may fail to enforce such standards or applicable local law on their contractors. If one or more of our direct or indirect contractors violates or fails to comply with, or is accused of violating or failing to comply with, such standards and laws, this could harm our reputation or result in a product recall and, as a result, could have an adverse effect on our sales and financial condition. Negative publicity regarding production methods, alleged unethical or illegal practices or workplace or related conditions of any of our suppliers, manufacturers or licensees could adversely affect our brand image and sales, force us to locate alternative suppliers, manufacturers or licenses or result in the imposition of additional regulations, including new or additional quotas, tariffs, sanctions, product safety regulations or other regulatory measures, by governmental authorities.
Risks Related to Our Securities, Investments and Liquidity
Our financial results may be adversely affected if substantial investments in businesses and operations fail to produce expected returns.
From time to time, we may invest in technology, business infrastructure, new businesses or capabilities, product offering and manufacturing innovation and expansion of existing businesses, such as our NIKE Direct operations, which require substantial cash investments and management attention. We believe cost-effective investments are essential to business growth and profitability; however, significant investments are subject to typical risks and uncertainties inherent in developing a new business or expanding an existing business. The failure of any significant investment to provide expected returns or profitability could have a material adverse effect on our financial results and divert management attention from more profitable business operations. See also “Our NIKE Direct operations have required and will continue to require a substantial investment and commitment of resources and are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties.”
The sale of a large number of shares of common stock by our principal stockholder could depress the market price of our common stock.
As of June 30, 2022, Swoosh, LLC beneficially owned approximately 77% of our Class A Common Stock. If, on June 30, 2022, all of these shares were converted into Class B Common Stock, the commensurate ownership percentage of our Class B Common Stock would be approximately 16%. The shares are available for resale, subject to the requirements of the U.S. securities laws and the terms of the limited liability company agreement governing Swoosh, LLC. The sale or prospect of a sale of a substantial number of these shares could have an adverse effect on the market price of our common stock. Swoosh, LLC was formed by Philip H. Knight, our Chairman Emeritus, to hold the majority of his shares of Class A Common Stock. Mr. Knight does not have voting rights with respect to Swoosh, LLC, although Travis Knight, his son and a NIKE director, has a significant role in the management of the Class A Common Stock owned by Swoosh, LLC.
Changes in our credit ratings or macroeconomic conditions may affect our liquidity, increasing borrowing costs and limiting our financing options.
Our long-term debt is currently rated Investment Grade by Standard & Poor's and Moody's Investors Service. If our credit ratings are lowered, borrowing costs for our existing facilities or for future long-term debt or short-term credit facilities may increase and our financing options, including our access to credit or capital markets, could be adversely affected. We may also be subject to restrictive covenants that would reduce our flexibility to, among other things, incur additional indebtedness, make restricted payments, pledge assets as security, make investments, loans, advances, guarantees and acquisitions, undergo fundamental changes and enter into transactions with affiliates. Failure to comply with such covenants could result in a default, and as a result, the commitments of our lenders under our credit agreements may be terminated and the maturity of amounts owed may be accelerated. In addition, macroeconomic conditions, such as increased volatility or disruption in the credit markets, could adversely affect our ability to refinance existing debt.
If our internal controls are ineffective, our operating results could be adversely affected.
Our internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements because of its inherent limitations, including the possibility of human error, the circumvention or overriding of controls or fraud. Even effective internal controls can provide only reasonable assurance with respect to the preparation and fair presentation of financial statements. If we fail to maintain the adequacy of our internal controls, including any failure to implement required new or improved controls, or if we experience difficulties in their implementation, our business and operating results could be harmed and we could fail to meet our financial reporting obligations.
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If our estimates or judgments relating to our critical accounting estimates prove to be incorrect, our operating results could be adversely affected.
The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances, as provided in “Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.” The results of these estimates form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets, liabilities and equity, and the amount of revenues and expenses that are not readily apparent from other sources. Significant assumptions and estimates used in preparing our consolidated financial statements include those related to revenue recognition, inventory reserves, contingent payments under endorsement contracts, accounting for property, plant and equipment and definite-lived assets, hedge accounting for derivatives, income taxes and other contingencies. Our operating results may be adversely affected if our assumptions change or if actual circumstances differ from those in our assumptions, which could cause our operating results to fall below the expectations of securities analysts and investors, resulting in a decline in the price of our Class B Common Stock.
Anti-takeover provisions may impair an acquisition of the Company or reduce the price of our common stock.
There are provisions within our articles of incorporation and Oregon law intended to protect shareholder interests by providing the Board of Directors a means to attempt to deny coercive takeover attempts or to negotiate with a potential acquirer in order to obtain more favorable terms. Such provisions include a control share acquisition statute, a freeze-out statute, two classes of stock that vote separately on certain issues, and the fact that holders of Class A Common Stock elect three-quarters of the Board of Directors rounded down to the next whole number. However, such provisions could discourage, delay or prevent an unsolicited merger, acquisition or other change in control of our company that some shareholders might believe to be in their best interests or in which shareholders might receive a premium for their common stock over the prevailing market price. These provisions could also discourage proxy contests for control of the Company.
We may fail to meet market expectations, which could cause the price of our stock to decline.
Our Class B Common Stock is traded publicly, and at any given time various securities analysts follow our financial results and issue reports on us. These reports include information about our historical financial results as well as analysts' opinions of our future performance, which may, in part, be based upon any guidance we have provided. Analysts' estimates are often different from our estimates or expectations. If our operating results are below the estimates or expectations of public market analysts and investors, our stock price could decline. In the past, securities class action litigation has been brought against NIKE and other companies following a decline in the market price of their securities. If our stock price is volatile for any reason, we may become involved in this type of litigation in the future. Any litigation could result in reputational damage, substantial costs and a diversion of management's attention and resources needed to successfully run our business.
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ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS
None.
ITEM 2. PROPERTIES
The following is a summary of principal properties owned or leased by NIKE:
The NIKE World Campus, owned by NIKE and located near Beaverton, Oregon, USA, is an approximately 400-acre site consisting of over 40 buildings which, together with adjacent leased properties, functions as our world headquarters and is occupied by approximately 11,200 employees engaged in management, research, design, development, marketing, finance and other administrative functions serving nearly all of our segments. We lease a similar, but smaller, administrative facility in Hilversum, the Netherlands, which serves as the headquarters for our Europe, Middle East & Africa geography and management of certain brand functions for our non-U.S. operations. We also lease an office complex in Shanghai, China, our headquarters for our Greater China geography, occupied by employees focused on implementing our wholesale, NIKE Direct and merchandising strategies in the region, among other functions.
In the United States, NIKE has eight significant distribution centers. Five are located in or near Memphis, Tennessee, two of which are owned and three of which are leased. Two other distribution centers, one located in Indianapolis, Indiana and one located in Dayton, Tennessee, are leased and operated by third-party logistics providers. One distribution center for Converse is located in Ontario, California, which is leased. NIKE has a number of distribution facilities outside the United States, some of which are leased and operated by third-party logistics providers. The most significant distribution facilities outside the United States are located in Laakdal, Belgium; Taicang, China; Tomisato, Japan and Icheon, Korea, all of which we own, as well as in Suzhou, China, which is leased and operated by a third-party logistics provider.
Air Manufacturing Innovation manufactures cushioning components used in footwear at NIKE-owned and leased facilities located near Beaverton, Oregon, and in Dong Nai Province, Vietnam, as well as at NIKE-owned facilities in St. Charles, Missouri.
Aside from the principal properties described above, we lease many offices worldwide for sales and administrative purposes. We lease approximately 1,041 retail stores worldwide, which primarily consist of factory stores. See “United States Market” and “International Markets” for additional information regarding our retail stores. Our leases expire at various dates through the fiscal year 2043.
ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
We do not believe there are any material pending legal proceedings, other than ordinary routine litigation incidental to our business, to which we are a party or of which any of our property is the subject. Refer to Note 18 — Commitments and Contingencies in the accompanying Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements for further information.
ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES
Not applicable.
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PART II
ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT'S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES
NIKE's Class B Common Stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and trades under the symbol NKE. At July 8, 2022, there were 22,214 holders of record of NIKE's Class B Common Stock and 15 holders of record of NIKE's Class A Common Stock. These figures do not include beneficial owners who hold shares in nominee name. The Class A Common Stock is not publicly traded, but each share is convertible upon request of the holder into one share of Class B Common Stock. Refer to our Consolidated Statements of Shareholders' Equity for dividends declared on the Class A and Class B Common Stock.
In June 2018, the Board of Directors approved a four-year, $15 billion share repurchase program. As of May 31, 2022, the Company had repurchased a total of 77.4 million shares at an average price of $111.98 per share for a total approximate cost of $8.7 billion under this program.
In June 2022, the Board of Directors authorized a new four-year, $18 billion program to repurchase shares of the Company's Class B common stock. The Company's new program will replace the current $15 billion share repurchase program, which will be terminated in fiscal 2023. Repurchases under the Company's new program will be made in open market or privately negotiated transactions in compliance with the Securities and Exchange Commission Rule 10b-18, subject to market conditions, applicable legal requirements and other relevant factors. The new share repurchase program does not obligate the Company to acquire any particular amount of common stock, and it may be suspended at any time at the Company's discretion.
All share repurchases were made under NIKE's publicly announced program, and there are no other programs under which the Company repurchases shares. The following table presents a summary of share repurchases made during the quarter ended May 31, 2022:
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PERFORMANCE GRAPH
The following graph demonstrates a five-year comparison of cumulative total returns for NIKE's Class B Common Stock; the Standard & Poor's 500 Stock Index; the Dow Jones U.S. Footwear Index; and the Standard & Poor's Apparel, Accessories & Luxury Goods Index. The graph assumes an investment of $100 on May 31, 2017, in each of the indices and our Class B Common Stock. Each of the indices assumes that all dividends were reinvested on the day of issuance.
COMPARISON OF 5-YEAR CUMULATIVE TOTAL RETURN AMONG NIKE, INC.; S&P 500 INDEX; THE DOW JONES U.S. FOOTWEAR INDEX; AND S&P APPAREL, ACCESSORIES & LUXURY GOODS INDEX
The Dow Jones U.S. Footwear Index consists of NIKE, Crocs Inc., Deckers Outdoor Corporation and Skechers U.S.A., Inc. Because NIKE is part of the Dow Jones U.S. Footwear Index, the price and returns of NIKE stock have a substantial effect on this index. The Standard & Poor's Apparel, Accessories & Luxury Goods Index consists of PVH Corporation, Ralph Lauren Corporation, Tapestry, Inc., Under Armour, Inc. and V.F. Corporation. The Dow Jones U.S. Footwear Index and the Standard & Poor's Apparel, Accessories & Luxury Goods Index include companies in two major lines of business in which the Company competes. The indices do not encompass all of the Company's competitors, nor all product categories and lines of business in which the Company is engaged.
The stock performance shown on the performance graph above is not necessarily indicative of future performance. The Company will not make or endorse any predictions as to future stock performance.
The performance graph above is being furnished solely to accompany this Report pursuant to Item 201(e) of Regulation S-K, is not being filed for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and is not to be incorporated by reference into any filing of the Company, whether made before or after the date hereof, regardless of any general incorporation language in such filing.
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ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA
Not applicable.
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ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
NIKE designs, develops, markets and sells athletic footwear, apparel, equipment, accessories and services worldwide. We are the largest seller of athletic footwear and apparel in the world. We sell our products through NIKE Direct operations, which is comprised of both NIKE-owned retail stores and sales through our digital platforms (also referred to as "NIKE Brand Digital"), to retail accounts and to a mix of independent distributors, licensees and sales representatives in virtually all countries around the world. Our goal is to deliver value to our shareholders by building a profitable global portfolio of branded footwear, apparel, equipment and accessories businesses. Our strategy is to achieve long-term revenue growth by creating innovative, “must-have” products, building deep personal consumer connections with our brands and delivering compelling consumer experiences through digital platforms and at retail.
Through the Consumer Direct Acceleration, we are focusing on creating the marketplace of the future through more premium, consistent and seamless consumer experiences, leading with digital and our owned stores, as well as select wholesale partners that share our marketplace vision. Over the last several years, as we have executed against the Consumer Direct Acceleration, we have grown our NIKE Direct business to be approximately 42% of total NIKE Brand revenues for fiscal 2022, and we have reduced the number of wholesale accounts globally. Additionally, we have aligned our product creation and category organizations around a new consumer construct focused on Men’s, Women’s and Kids’ and continue to invest in data and analytics, demand sensing, insight gathering, inventory management and other areas to create an end-to-end technology foundation, which we expect will further accelerate our digital transformation. We believe this unified approach will accelerate growth and unlock more efficiency for our business, while driving speed and responsiveness as we serve consumers globally.
During fiscal 2021, we substantially completed a series of leadership and operating model changes to streamline and speed up the strategic execution of the Consumer Direct Acceleration. These changes resulted in a net reduction of our global workforce and during fiscal 2021, we incurred pre-tax charges of $294 million, which relate to employee termination costs and, to a lesser extent, stock-based compensation expense. For fiscal 2022, we recognized an immaterial amount of related employee termination costs and, to a lesser extent, stock-based compensation expense. We expect future annual wage-related savings will be reinvested to execute against this next phase of our strategy. For more information related to our organizational realignment and related costs, see Note 21 — Restructuring within the accompanying Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements.
COVID-19 AND MARKET DYNAMICS UPDATE
The COVID-19 pandemic and its impacts on the global supply chain created volatility in our fiscal 2022 business results and operations globally. Despite these challenges, we achieved record Revenues for fiscal 2022, which increased 5% compared to the prior fiscal year with gross margin expansion of 120 basis points. Our NIKE Direct business continued its momentum, growing 14% and 15% on a reported and currency-neutral basis, respectively, led by North America, APLA and EMEA, partially offset by declines in Greater China due to a COVID-19 resurgence in the third and fourth quarters of fiscal 2022 as well as marketplace dynamics. During fiscal 2022, nearly all of our owned stores remained open across North America, EMEA and APLA. In Greater China however, due to a COVID-19 resurgence, we experienced a higher level of temporary store closures, with some operating on reduced hours, as well as lower physical traffic compared to pre-pandemic levels.
During the first quarter of fiscal 2022, the majority of NIKE Brand and Converse contract manufacturers in Vietnam and Indonesia were subject to government mandated shutdowns due to COVID-19. As a result of these closures, we lost approximately three months of production, impacting available product supply throughout fiscal 2022. Globally, nearly all of our supplier base is currently operational without restrictions and with factory production exceeding pre-closure production levels. In addition, our supply of available inventory continued to be impacted in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022 as extended inventory transit times drove elevated levels of in-transit inventory. These supply chain impacts and a COVID-19 resurgence in Greater China, combined with other factors, caused Inventories to grow to $8.4 billion, an increase of 23% compared to fiscal 2021.
We also experienced elevated transportation, logistics and fulfillment costs as a result of this dynamic environment, which partially offset gross margin expansion in fiscal 2022.
Inventory transit times as well as logistics and fulfillment costs are expected to remain elevated. We also expect product costs to remain elevated due to higher input costs. In the first quarter of fiscal 2023, we expect gross margin could be negatively impacted by increased promotional activity to sell seasonal product arriving late due to the combination of temporary factory closures at the beginning of fiscal 2022 and continued elevated transit times. To mitigate the impact across our business, our teams are continuing to leverage our operational playbook and taking actions where we can, including balancing inventory across our geographies, pricing actions and employing a seasonless approach to products. Despite these short-term dynamics, we believe our Consumer Direct Acceleration strategy continues to drive our business towards our long-term financial goals.
During fiscal 2022, we continued to invest in our digital transformation and brand campaigns as the world returned to sport, and we expect to maintain our multi-year investment plans in order to transform our business of the future.
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We expect the operating environment could remain volatile in fiscal 2023 as there remains risk that COVID-19 variants may continue to cause disruption to our operations and could have a material adverse impact on future revenue growth as well as overall profitability.
For more information refer to Item 1A. Risk Factors, within Part I, Item 1. Business.
FISCAL 2022 OVERVIEW
In fiscal 2022, NIKE, Inc. achieved record Revenues of $46.7 billion, which increased 5% and 6% on a reported and currency-neutral basis, respectively, driven by higher revenues in EMEA, North America and APLA, partially offset by declines in Greater China. The NIKE Brand, which represents over 90% of NIKE, Inc. Revenues, increased 5% and 6% on a reported and currency-neutral basis, respectively, compared to fiscal 2021. NIKE Direct grew 14% and 15%, on a reported and currency-neutral basis, respectively, driven by an increase of 18% in NIKE Brand Digital, as growth in North America, APLA and EMEA was partially offset by a decline in Greater China. Wholesale revenues declined 1% as declines in North America and Greater China were partially offset by growth in EMEA and APLA. Revenues for Converse increased 6% and 7%, on a reported and currency-neutral basis, respectively, led by double-digit growth in our direct to consumer business, partially offset by lower wholesale revenues.
Income before income taxes remained flat for fiscal 2022, as higher revenues and gross margin expansion were offset by higher selling and administrative expense. NIKE, Inc. gross margin increased 120 basis points, led by margin expansion in our NIKE Direct business, a higher mix of full-price sales and favorable changes in net foreign currency exchange rates, including hedges, partially offset by elevated freight and logistics costs and higher inventory obsolescence reserves primarily recognized in Greater China in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022. Selling and administrative expense increased due to higher Operating overhead and Demand creation expense. Operating overhead expense increased primarily due to higher strategic technology investments as well as increases in wage-related expenses and NIKE Direct variable costs. This activity was partially offset by higher restructuring-related costs in the prior year related to our organizational realignment. For more information, see Note 21 — Restructuring within the accompanying Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements. Demand creation expense increased primarily due to normalization of spend against brand campaigns and continued investments in digital marketing to support heightened digital demand. ROIC as of May 31, 2022 was 46.5% compared to 48.8% as of May 31, 2021. ROIC is considered a non-GAAP financial measure, see "Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures" for further information.
During the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022, we entered into separate definitive agreements to sell our legal entities in Argentina and Uruguay as well as our legal entity in Chile to third-party distributors. The assets and liabilities of these entities will remain classified as held-for-sale on our Consolidated Balance Sheets until the transactions close, which is expected to occur prior to the end of the third quarter of fiscal 2023. For more information related to our planned distributor partnership transition within APLA, see Note 20 — Acquisitions and Divestitures within the accompanying Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements. In future quarters, as we shift from a wholesale and direct to consumer operating model to a distributor operating model within these countries, we expect consolidated NIKE, Inc. and APLA revenue growth will be reduced due to differences in commercial terms. However, over time we expect the future operating model to have a favorable impact on our overall profitability as we reduce selling and administrative expenses, as well as lessen exposure to foreign exchange rate volatility.
Economic sanctions imposed on Russia during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022, impacted our local business and a reduction in the Ruble liquidity affected our ability to manage operational impact and related foreign currency risk. As a result, we deconsolidated our Russian legal entities, the net revenues of which were less than one percent of consolidated net Revenues for fiscal 2021. The deconsolidation of our Russian legal entities resulted in a one-time, pre-tax charge of $96 million recognized within Other (income) expense, net, classified within Corporate. Subsequent to the end of fiscal 2022, we made the decision to leave the Russian marketplace.
While foreign currency markets remain volatile, in part due to geopolitical dynamics which have led to a stronger U.S. Dollar, we continue to see opportunities to drive future growth and profitability. We remain committed to effectively managing our business and mitigating financial market risks to achieve our financial goals over the long-term by executing against the operational strategies outlined above.
For discussion related to the results of operations and changes in financial condition for fiscal 2021 compared to fiscal 2020 refer to Part II, Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations in our fiscal 2021 Form 10-K, which was filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission on July 20, 2021.
USE OF NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES
Throughout this Annual Report on Form 10-K, we discuss non-GAAP financial measures, including references to wholesale equivalent revenues, currency-neutral revenues, Total NIKE Brand earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) and Total NIKE, Inc. EBIT, as well as EBIT Margin and ROIC, which should be considered in addition to, and not in lieu of, the financial measures calculated and presented in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”). References to wholesale equivalent revenues are intended to provide context as to the total size of our NIKE Brand market footprint if we had no NIKE Direct operations. NIKE Brand wholesale equivalent revenues consist of (1) sales to external wholesale customers and (2) internal sales from our wholesale operations to our NIKE Direct operations, which are charged at prices comparable to those charged to external wholesale customers. Additionally, currency-neutral revenues are calculated
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using actual exchange rates in use during the comparative prior year period to enhance the visibility of the underlying business trends, excluding the impact of translation arising from foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations. EBIT is calculated as Net Income before Interest expense (income), net and Income tax expense in the Consolidated Statements of Income. EBIT Margin is calculated as EBIT divided by total NIKE, Inc. Revenues. ROIC represents a performance measure that management believes is useful information in understanding the Company's ability to effectively manage invested capital, see the table below for how the Company calculates this measure.
Management uses these non-GAAP financial measures when evaluating the Company's performance, including when making financial and operating decisions. Additionally, management believes these non-GAAP financial measures provide investors with additional financial information that should be considered when assessing our underlying business performance and trends. However, references to wholesale equivalent revenues, currency-neutral revenues, ROIC, EBIT and EBIT margin should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for other financial measures calculated and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP and may not be comparable to similarly titled non-GAAP measures used by other companies.
Our ROIC calculation as of May 31, 2022 and 2021 is as follows:
FOR THE TRAILING FOUR QUARTERS ENDED
Numerator
Add: Interest expense (income), net 205 262
Add: Income tax expense 605 934
Earnings before interest and taxes 6,856 6,923
Income tax adjustment(1) (624) (970)
Earnings before interest and after taxes $ 6,232 $ 5,953
AVERAGE FOR THE TRAILING FIVE QUARTERS ENDED
Denominator
Less: Cash and equivalents and Short-term investments 13,748 11,217
RETURN ON INVESTED CAPITAL 46.5 % 48.8 %
(1)Equals Earnings before interest and taxes multiplied by the effective tax rate as of the respective quarter end.
(2)Total debt includes the following: 1) Current portion of long-term debt, 2) Notes Payable, 3) Current portion of operating lease liabilities, 4) Long-term debt and 5) Operating lease liabilities.
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RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
Interest expense (income), net 205 262 — 89 —
Other (income) expense, net (181) 14 — 139 —
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CONSOLIDATED OPERATING RESULTS
REVENUES
NIKE, Inc. Revenues:
NIKE Brand Revenues by:
Supplemental NIKE Brand Revenues Details:
NIKE Brand Revenues by:
NIKE Brand Revenues on a Wholesale Equivalent Basis:(1)
NIKE Brand Wholesale Equivalent Revenues by:(1),(4)
(1)The percent change excluding currency changes and the presentation of wholesale equivalent revenues represent non-GAAP financial measures. See "Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures" for further information.
(2)Global Brand Divisions revenues include NIKE Brand licensing and other miscellaneous revenues that are not part of a geographic operating segment.
(3)Corporate revenues primarily consist of foreign currency hedge gains and losses related to revenues generated by entities within the NIKE Brand geographic operating segments and Converse, but managed through our central foreign exchange risk management program.
(4)As a result of the Consumer Direct Acceleration strategy, announced in fiscal 2021, the Company is now organized around a new consumer construct of Men's, Women's and Kids'. Beginning in the first quarter of fiscal 2022, unisex products are classified within Men's, and Jordan Brand revenues are separately reported. Certain prior year amounts have been reclassified to conform to fiscal 2022 presentation. These changes had no impact on previously reported consolidated results of operations or shareholders' equity. For additional information about the Consumer Direct Acceleration refer to Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations within the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2021.
(5)Others include products not allocated to Men’s, Women’s, NIKE Kids’ and Jordan Brand, as well as certain adjustments that are not allocated to products designated by consumer.
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FISCAL 2022 NIKE BRAND REVENUE HIGHLIGHTS
The following tables present NIKE Brand revenues disaggregated by reportable operating segment, distribution channel and major product line:
FISCAL 2022 COMPARED TO FISCAL 2021
On a currency-neutral basis, NIKE, Inc. Revenues increased 6% for fiscal 2022, driven by higher revenues in EMEA, North America and APLA, partially offset by lower revenues in Greater China. Higher revenues in EMEA and North America each contributed approximately 3 percentage points to NIKE, Inc. Revenues, and APLA contributed approximately 2 percentage points, while lower revenues in Greater China reduced NIKE, Inc. Revenues by approximately 2 percentage points.
On a currency-neutral basis, NIKE Brand footwear revenues increased 4% for fiscal 2022, driven by growth in NIKE Direct, partially offset by a decline in our wholesale business. Unit sales of footwear decreased 3%, while higher average selling price (ASP) per pair contributed approximately 7 percentage points of footwear revenue growth. Higher ASP per pair was primarily due to higher NIKE Direct ASP, the favorable impact of growth in our NIKE Direct business, higher full-price ASP, net of discounts, on a wholesale equivalent basis, and a higher mix of full-price sales.
Currency-neutral NIKE Brand apparel revenues increased 6% for fiscal 2022, driven primarily by growth in Men's. Unit sales of apparel remained flat, and higher ASP per unit contributed approximately 6 percentage points of apparel revenue growth. Higher ASP per unit was primarily due to higher full-price and NIKE Direct ASPs.
On a reported basis, NIKE Direct revenues represented approximately 42% of our total NIKE Brand revenues for fiscal 2022 compared to 39% for fiscal 2021. NIKE Brand Digital sales were $10.7 billion for fiscal 2022 compared to $9.1 billion for fiscal 2021. On a currency-neutral basis, NIKE Direct revenues increased 15% for fiscal 2022, driven by NIKE Brand Digital sales growth of 18%, comparable store sales growth of 10%, in part due to improved physical retail traffic, and the addition of new stores. Comparable store sales, which exclude NIKE Brand Digital sales, comprises revenues from NIKE-owned in-line and factory stores for which all three of the following requirements have been met: (1) the store has been open at least one year, (2) square footage has not changed by more than 15% within the past year and (3) the store has not been permanently repositioned within the past year. Comparable store sales includes revenues from stores that were temporarily closed during the period as a result of COVID-19. Comparable store sales represents a performance measure that we believe is useful information for management and investors in understanding the performance of our established NIKE-owned in-line and factory stores. Management considers this metric when making financial and operating decisions. The method of calculating comparable store sales varies across the retail industry. As a result, our calculation of this metric may not be comparable to similarly titled measures used by other companies.
On a currency-neutral basis, fiscal 2022 NIKE Brand revenue growth of 6% was primarily driven by increases in Men's and the Jordan Brand, which grew 3% and 7%, respectively.
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GROSS MARGIN
FISCAL 2022 COMPARED TO FISCAL 2021
For fiscal 2022, our consolidated gross profit increased 8% to $21,479 million compared to $19,962 million for fiscal 2021. Gross margin increased 120 basis points to 46.0% for fiscal 2022 compared to 44.8% for fiscal 2021 due to the following:
*Wholesale equivalent
The increase in gross margin for fiscal 2022 was primarily due to higher margin in our NIKE Direct business, a higher mix of full-price sales on a wholesale equivalent basis and favorable changes in net foreign currency exchange rates, including hedges. This activity was partially offset by higher product costs on a wholesale equivalent basis, largely due to elevated freight and logistics costs as well as an increase in other costs primarily due to higher inventory obsolescence reserves recognized in Greater China in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022.
TOTAL SELLING AND ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSE
(Dollars in millions) FISCAL 2022 FISCAL 2021 % CHANGE FISCAL 2020 % CHANGE
(1)Demand creation expense consists of advertising and promotion costs, including costs of endorsement contracts, complimentary product, television, digital and print advertising and media costs, brand events and retail brand presentation.
FISCAL 2022 COMPARED TO FISCAL 2021
Demand creation expense increased 24% for fiscal 2022, primarily due to higher advertising and marketing spend against brand campaigns as we experienced marketplace closures in the prior year due to COVID-19, as well as continued investments in digital marketing to support heightened digital demand. Changes in foreign currency exchange rates decreased Demand creation expense by approximately 1 percentage point.
Operating overhead expense increased 11% for fiscal 2022, primarily due to higher strategic technology investments and increases in wage-related expenses and NIKE Direct variable costs. This activity was partially offset by higher restructuring-related costs in the prior year related to our organizational realignment. For more information, see Note 21 — Restructuring within the accompanying Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements. Changes in foreign currency exchange rates had an insignificant impact on Operating overhead expense.
OTHER (INCOME) EXPENSE, NET
Other (income) expense, net $ (181) $ 14 $ 139
Other (income) expense, net comprises foreign currency conversion gains and losses from the remeasurement of monetary assets and liabilities denominated in non-functional currencies and the impact of certain foreign currency derivative instruments, as well as unusual or non-operating transactions that are outside the normal course of business.
FISCAL 2022 COMPARED TO FISCAL 2021
Other (income) expense, net changed from $14 million of other expense, net in fiscal 2021 to $181 million of other income, net in the current year, primarily due to a $219 million net favorable change in foreign currency conversion gains and losses, including hedges, as well as a net favorable impact related to our strategic distributor partnership transition within APLA, partially offset by the one-time charge related to the deconsolidation of our Russian operations.
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For more information related to our distributor partnership transition within APLA, see Note 20 — Acquisitions and Divestitures within the accompanying Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements.
We estimate the combination of the translation of foreign currency-denominated profits from our international businesses, and the year-over-year change in foreign currency-related gains and losses included in Other (income) expense, net had a favorable impact on our Income before income taxes of $132 million for fiscal 2022.
INCOME TAXES
FISCAL 2022 COMPARED TO FISCAL 2021
Our effective tax rate was 9.1% for fiscal 2022, compared to 14.0% for fiscal 2021, primarily due to a shift in our earnings mix and recognition of a non-cash, one-time benefit related to the onshoring of certain non-U.S. intangible property ownership rights in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022.
OPERATING SEGMENTS
Our operating segments are evidence of the structure of the Company's internal organization. The NIKE Brand segments are defined by geographic regions for operations participating in NIKE Brand sales activity.
Each NIKE Brand geographic segment operates predominantly in one industry: the design, development, marketing and selling of athletic footwear, apparel and equipment. The Company's reportable operating segments for the NIKE Brand are: North America; Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA); Greater China; and Asia Pacific & Latin America (APLA), and include results for the NIKE and Jordan brands. The Company's NIKE Direct operations are managed within each geographic operating segment. Converse is also a reportable operating segment for the Company and operates predominately in one industry: the design, marketing, licensing and selling of athletic lifestyle sneakers, apparel and accessories.
As part of our centrally managed foreign exchange risk management program, standard foreign currency exchange rates are assigned twice per year to each NIKE Brand entity in our geographic operating segments and Converse. These rates are set approximately nine and twelve months in advance of the future selling seasons to which they relate (specifically, for each currency, one standard rate applies to the fall and holiday selling seasons and one standard rate applies to the spring and summer selling seasons) based on average market spot rates in the calendar month preceding the date they are established. Inventories and Cost of sales for geographic operating segments and Converse reflect the use of these standard rates to record non-functional currency product purchases into the entity's functional currency. Differences between assigned standard foreign currency exchange rates and actual market rates are included in Corporate, together with foreign currency hedge gains and losses generated from our centrally managed foreign exchange risk management program and other conversion gains and losses.
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The breakdown of Revenues is as follows:
(1) The percent change excluding currency changes represents a non-GAAP financial measure. See "Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures" for further information.
(2) Refer to Note 20 — Acquisitions and Divestitures within the accompanying Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information on the transition of our NIKE Brand business in Brazil to a third-party distributor.
(3) Global Brand Divisions revenues include NIKE Brand licensing and other miscellaneous revenues that are not part of a geographic operating segment.
(4) Corporate revenues primarily consist of foreign currency hedge gains and losses related to revenues generated by entities within the NIKE Brand geographic operating segments and Converse, but managed through our central foreign exchange risk management program.
The primary financial measure used by the Company to evaluate performance of individual operating segments is EBIT, which represents Net income before Interest expense (income), net and Income tax expense in the Consolidated Statements of Income. As discussed in Note 17 — Operating Segments and Related Information in the accompanying Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements, certain corporate costs are not included in EBIT of our operating segments.
The breakdown of earnings before interest and taxes is as follows:
(Dollars in millions) FISCAL 2022 FISCAL 2021 % CHANGE FISCAL 2020 % CHANGE
Interest expense (income), net 205 262 — 89 —
(1) Total NIKE Brand EBIT, Total NIKE, Inc. EBIT and EBIT Margin represent non-GAAP financial measures. See "Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures" for further information.
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NORTH AMERICA
Revenues by:
Revenues by:
FISCAL 2022 COMPARED TO FISCAL 2021
On a currency-neutral basis, North America revenues increased 7%, due primarily to higher revenues in Men's and the Jordan Brand. NIKE Direct revenues increased 25%, driven by strong digital sales growth of 30%, comparable store sales growth of 17% and the addition of new stores.
Footwear revenues increased 5% on a currency-neutral basis, driven by growth in NIKE Direct, partially offset by a decline in our wholesale business. Unit sales of footwear decreased 4%, while higher ASP per pair contributed approximately 9 percentage points of footwear revenue growth. Higher ASP per pair was primarily due to higher NIKE Direct ASP, the favorable impact of growth in our NIKE Direct business and a higher mix of full-price sales.
On a currency-neutral basis, apparel revenues increased 9%, driven primarily by higher revenues in Men's. Unit sales of apparel decreased 2%, while higher ASP per unit contributed approximately 11 percentage points of apparel revenue growth. The increase in ASP per unit was primarily driven by higher full-price and NIKE Direct ASPs as well as a higher mix of full-price sales.
Reported EBIT remained flat as higher revenues were offset by higher selling and administrative expense and gross margin contraction. Gross margin decreased approximately 10 basis points, largely due to higher product and other costs, partially offset by higher margins and the favorable impact of growth in our NIKE Direct business, a higher mix of full-price sales and higher full-price ASP, net of discounts, primarily due to strategic pricing actions. Higher product and other costs were primarily due to increased freight, logistics and warehousing costs. Selling and administrative expense increased due to higher demand creation and operating overhead expense. Demand creation expense increased primarily as a result of higher advertising and marketing expense, as well as higher digital marketing investments. The increase in operating overhead expense reflected higher wage-related costs as well as an increase in NIKE Direct variable costs.
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EUROPE, MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA
Revenues by:
Revenues by:
FISCAL 2022 COMPARED TO FISCAL 2021
On a currency-neutral basis, EMEA revenues for fiscal 2022 grew 12%, due primarily to higher revenues in Men’s, the Jordan Brand and Women's. NIKE Direct revenues increased 15%, primarily due to comparable store sales growth of 30% due to improved physical retail traffic, in part resulting from temporary store closures and safety-related measures in response to COVID-19 in the prior year, as well as digital sales growth of 8%.
Currency-neutral footwear revenues increased 9%, driven by higher revenues in the Jordan Brand and Men's. Unit sales of footwear decreased 1%, while higher ASP per pair contributed approximately 10 percentage points of footwear revenue growth. Higher ASP per pair was primarily due to higher NIKE Direct and full-price ASPs as well as a higher mix of full-price sales.
Currency-neutral apparel revenues increased 16% due primarily to higher revenues in Men's and Women's. Unit sales of apparel increased 9%, while higher ASP per unit contributed approximately 7 percentage points of apparel revenue growth, primarily due to higher full-price and NIKE Direct ASPs.
Reported EBIT increased 35% as gross margin expansion and higher revenues more than offset higher selling and administrative expense. Gross margin increased approximately 570 basis points primarily due to higher NIKE Direct margins, favorable changes in standard foreign currency exchange rates, a higher mix of full-price sales and higher full-price ASP, net of discounts, partially offset by higher product costs. Higher full-price ASP, net of discounts, was largely due to strategic pricing actions, while higher product costs were primarily due to increased freight and logistics costs. Selling and administrative expense increased due to higher demand creation and operating overhead expense. Higher demand creation expense was driven by higher advertising and marketing expense. Higher operating overhead expense was primarily due to increases in wage-related expenses and professional services.
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GREATER CHINA
Revenues by:
Revenues by:
FISCAL 2022 COMPARED TO FISCAL 2021
On a currency-neutral basis, Greater China revenues for fiscal 2022 decreased 13%, reflecting impacts from supply chain constraints, government restrictions due to COVID-19 as well as marketplace dynamics. The decrease in revenues was primarily due to lower revenues in Men’s and Women's. NIKE Direct revenues decreased 12% due to digital sales declines of 15% and comparable store sales declines of 14%, in part due to reduced physical retail traffic as a result of government restrictions due to COVID-19 as well as ongoing marketplace dynamics, partially offset by the addition of new stores.
Currency-neutral footwear revenues decreased 10%, driven primarily by lower revenues in Men's and Women's. Unit sales of footwear decreased 7%, while lower ASP per pair reduced footwear revenues by approximately 3 percentage points, driven by lower NIKE Direct and full-price ASPs, reflecting higher discounts.
Currency-neutral apparel revenues decreased 21%, due primarily to lower revenues in Men's and Women's. Unit sales of apparel decreased 15%, while lower ASP per unit reduced apparel revenues by approximately 6 percentage points, primarily due to lower NIKE Direct and full-price ASPs, reflecting higher discounts.
Reported EBIT decreased 27% due to lower revenues, gross margin contraction and higher selling and administrative expense. Gross margin decreased approximately 390 basis points, reflecting impacts from COVID-19 related government restrictions which reduced physical retail traffic and led to higher inventory obsolescence reserves recognized primarily in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022. The decrease in gross margin was also largely due to higher product costs and lower NIKE Direct margins. This activity was partially offset by favorable changes in standard foreign currency exchange rates. Selling and administrative expense increased due to higher demand creation and operating overhead expense. Growth in demand creation expense was primarily due to higher advertising and marketing expense. Operating overhead expense increased largely due to higher wage-related costs and higher strategic technology investments.
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ASIA PACIFIC & LATIN AMERICA
Revenues by:
Revenues by:
As discussed previously, our NIKE Brand business in Brazil transitioned to a distributor operating model during fiscal 2021. During the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022, we signed separate definitive agreements to sell our legal entities in Argentina and Uruguay as well as our legal entity in Chile to third-party distributors. The assets and liabilities of our legal entities in Argentina, Chile and Uruguay will remain classified as held-for-sale on the Consolidated Balance Sheets until the transactions close, which is expected to occur prior to the end of the third quarter of fiscal 2023. The impacts of closing the Brazil transaction as well as classifying the Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay entities as held-for-sale in fiscal 2020 are included within Corporate and are not reflected in the APLA operating segment results. For more information see Note 20 — Acquisitions and Divestitures within the accompanying Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements.
FISCAL 2022 COMPARED TO FISCAL 2021
On a currency-neutral basis, APLA revenues increased 16% for fiscal 2022. The increase was due to higher revenues across nearly all territories, driven by SOCO (which comprises Argentina, Chile and Uruguay), Mexico and Korea, which increased 58%, 35% and 16%, respectively. Revenues increased primarily due to higher revenues in Men’s and Women's. NIKE Direct revenues increased 30%, primarily due to digital sales growth of 51% and comparable store sales growth of 13%, in part due to improved physical retail traffic, partially offset by store closures.
Currency-neutral footwear revenues increased 17% for fiscal 2022 in part due to higher revenues in Women's and Men's. Unit sales of footwear increased 2%, while higher ASP per pair contributed approximately 15 percentage points of footwear revenue growth. Higher ASP per pair was driven by higher NIKE Direct ASP, higher full-price ASP, reflecting lower discounts, higher off-price ASP and a higher mix of full-price sales. Higher ASPs, in part, reflect inflationary conditions in our SOCO territory.
Currency-neutral apparel revenues increased 12% for fiscal 2022 due primarily to higher revenues in Men's. Unit sales of apparel increased 3%, while higher ASP per unit contributed approximately 9 percentage points of apparel revenue growth, driven by higher full-price ASP, reflecting lower discounts, as well as higher NIKE Direct and off-price ASPs. Higher ASPs, in part, reflect inflationary conditions in our SOCO territory.
Reported EBIT increased 24% for fiscal 2022, as higher revenues and gross margin expansion more than offset higher selling and administrative expense. Gross margin increased approximately 400 basis points primarily due to higher margins and the favorable impact of growth in our NIKE Direct business, higher full-price ASP largely due to lower discounts, favorable changes in standard foreign currency exchange rates, lower other costs as well as a higher mix of full-price sales. The decrease in other costs was primarily due to lower warehousing costs. Selling and administrative expense increased due to higher demand creation and operating overhead expense. Higher demand creation expense was primarily due to higher digital marketing investments to support heightened digital demand. The increase in operating overhead expense was primarily due to an increase in NIKE Direct variable expenses as well as higher bad debt expense.
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GLOBAL BRAND DIVISIONS
Global Brand Divisions primarily represent demand creation and operating overhead expense, including product creation and design expenses that are centrally managed for the NIKE Brand, as well as costs associated with NIKE Direct global digital operations and enterprise technology. Global Brand Divisions revenues include NIKE Brand licensing and other miscellaneous revenues that are not part of a geographic operating segment.
FISCAL 2022 COMPARED TO FISCAL 2021
Global Brand Divisions' loss before interest and taxes increased 17% for fiscal 2022 due to higher total selling and administrative expense, driven by higher operating overhead and demand creation expense. Higher operating overhead expense was primarily due to an increase in strategic technology investments, continued investment in digital capabilities and higher wage-related expenses. Higher demand creation expense was primarily due to higher advertising and marketing expense and higher sports marketing costs.
CONVERSE
Revenues by:
Revenues by:
(1) Other revenues consist of territories serviced by third-party licensees who pay royalties to Converse for the use of its registered trademarks and other intellectual property rights. We do not own the Converse trademarks in Japan and accordingly do not earn revenues in Japan.
FISCAL 2022 COMPARED TO FISCAL 2021
On a currency-neutral basis, Converse revenues increased 7% for fiscal 2022 due to revenue growth in North America, Western Europe and licensee markets, partially offset by declines in Asia. Direct to consumer revenues increased 22%, led by strong digital demand. Wholesale revenues decreased 4%, primarily due to ongoing marketplace dynamics in China as well as global supply chain constraints. Combined unit sales within the wholesale and direct to consumer channels decreased 6%, while ASP increased 12%, driven by growth in direct to consumer.
Reported EBIT increased 23%, driven by gross margin expansion and higher revenues, partially offset by higher selling and administrative expense. Gross margin increased approximately 360 basis points as higher margins in direct to consumer, growth in licensee revenues, favorable changes in standard foreign currency exchange rates, and higher full-price ASP, net of discounts, were partially offset by higher product costs due to increased freight, duty and logistics costs. Selling and administrative expense increased due to higher demand creation and operating overhead expense. Demand creation expense increased primarily due to higher advertising and marketing expense, while operating overhead increased primarily due to higher professional services costs.
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CORPORATE
(Dollars in millions) FISCAL 2022 FISCAL 2021 % CHANGE FISCAL 2020 % CHANGE
Revenues $ (72) $ 40 — $ (11) —
Corporate revenues primarily consist of foreign currency hedge gains and losses related to revenues generated by entities within the NIKE Brand geographic operating segments and Converse, but managed through our central foreign exchange risk management program.
The Corporate loss before interest and taxes primarily consists of unallocated general and administrative expenses, including expenses associated with centrally managed departments; depreciation and amortization related to our corporate headquarters; unallocated insurance, benefit and compensation programs, including stock-based compensation; and certain foreign currency gains and losses.
In addition to the foreign currency gains and losses recognized in Corporate revenues, foreign currency results in Corporate include gains and losses resulting from the difference between actual foreign currency exchange rates and standard rates used to record non-functional currency denominated product purchases within the NIKE Brand geographic operating segments and Converse; related foreign currency hedge results; conversion gains and losses arising from remeasurement of monetary assets and liabilities in non-functional currencies; and certain other foreign currency derivative instruments.
FISCAL 2022 COMPARED TO FISCAL 2021
Corporate's loss before interest and taxes decreased $42 million during fiscal 2022, primarily due to the following:
•a favorable change in net foreign currency gains and losses of $219 million related to the remeasurement of monetary assets and liabilities denominated in non-functional currencies and the impact of certain foreign currency derivative instruments, reported as a component of consolidated Other (income) expense, net;
•an unfavorable change of $190 million related to the difference between actual foreign currency exchange rates and standard foreign currency exchange rates assigned to the NIKE Brand geographic operating segments and Converse, net of hedge gains and losses; these results are reported as a component of consolidated gross margin; and
•a favorable change of $13 million largely due to higher restructuring-related costs associated with our organizational realignment in the prior year and, to a lesser extent, a net favorable impact related to our strategic distributor partnership transition within APLA in the current year, partially offset by the one-time charge related to the deconsolidation of our Russian operations and higher administrative and wage-related expenses in fiscal 2022.
FOREIGN CURRENCY EXPOSURES AND HEDGING PRACTICES
OVERVIEW
As a global company with significant operations outside the United States, in the normal course of business we are exposed to risk arising from changes in currency exchange rates. Our primary foreign currency exposures arise from the recording of transactions denominated in non-functional currencies and the translation of foreign currency denominated results of operations, financial position and cash flows into U.S. Dollars.
Our foreign exchange risk management program is intended to lessen both the positive and negative effects of currency fluctuations on our consolidated results of operations, financial position and cash flows. We manage global foreign exchange risk centrally on a portfolio basis to address those risks material to NIKE, Inc. We manage these exposures by taking advantage of natural offsets and currency correlations existing within the portfolio and, where practical and material, by hedging a portion of the remaining exposures using derivative instruments such as forward contracts and options. As described below, the implementation of the NIKE Trading Company (NTC) and our foreign currency adjustment program enhanced our ability to manage our foreign exchange risk by increasing the natural offsets and currency correlation benefits existing within our portfolio of foreign exchange exposures. Our hedging policy is designed to partially or entirely offset the impact of exchange rate changes on the underlying net exposures being hedged. Where exposures are hedged, our program has the effect of delaying the impact of exchange rate movements on our Consolidated Financial Statements; the length of the delay is dependent upon hedge horizons. We do not hold or issue derivative instruments for trading or speculative purposes.
Refer to Note 6 — Fair Value Measurements and Note 14 — Risk Management and Derivatives in the accompanying Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements for additional description of outstanding derivatives at each reported period end.
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TRANSACTIONAL EXPOSURES
We conduct business in various currencies and have transactions which subject us to foreign currency risk. Our most significant transactional foreign currency exposures are:
•Product Costs — NIKE's product costs are exposed to fluctuations in foreign currencies in the following ways:
1.Product purchases denominated in currencies other than the functional currency of the transacting entity:
a.Certain NIKE entities purchase product from the NTC, a wholly-owned sourcing hub that buys NIKE branded products from third-party factories, predominantly in U.S. Dollars. The NTC, whose functional currency is the U.S. Dollar, then sells the products to NIKE entities in their respective functional currencies. NTC sales to a NIKE entity with a different functional currency results in a foreign currency exposure for the NTC.
b.Other NIKE entities purchase product directly from third-party factories in U.S. Dollars. These purchases generate a foreign currency exposure for those NIKE entities with a functional currency other than the U.S. Dollar.
In both purchasing scenarios, a weaker U.S. Dollar reduces inventory costs incurred by NIKE whereas a stronger U.S. Dollar increases its cost.
2.Factory input costs: NIKE operates a foreign currency adjustment program with certain factories. The program is designed to more effectively manage foreign currency risk by assuming certain of the factories' foreign currency exposures, some of which are natural offsets to our existing foreign currency exposures. Under this program, our payments to these factories are adjusted for rate fluctuations in the basket of currencies (“factory currency exposure index”) in which the labor, materials and overhead costs incurred by the factories in the production of NIKE branded products (“factory input costs”) are denominated.
For the currency within the factory currency exposure indices that is the local or functional currency of the factory, the currency rate fluctuation affecting the product cost is recorded within Inventories and is recognized in Cost of sales when the related product is sold to a third-party. All currencies within the indices, excluding the U.S. Dollar and the local or functional currency of the factory, are recognized as embedded derivative contracts and are recorded at fair value through Other (income) expense, net. Refer to Note 14 — Risk Management and Derivatives in the accompanying Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements for additional detail.
As an offset to the impacts of the fluctuating U.S. Dollar on our non-functional currency denominated product purchases described above, a strengthening U.S. Dollar against the foreign currencies within the factory currency exposure indices reduces NIKE's U.S. Dollar inventory cost. Conversely, a weakening U.S. Dollar against the indexed foreign currencies increases our inventory cost.
•Non-Functional Currency Denominated External Sales — A portion of our NIKE Brand and Converse revenues associated with European operations are earned in currencies other than the Euro (e.g., the British Pound) but are recognized at a subsidiary that uses the Euro as its functional currency. These sales generate a foreign currency exposure.
•Other Costs — Non-functional currency denominated costs, such as endorsement contracts, also generate foreign currency risk, though to a lesser extent. In certain cases, the Company has entered into contractual agreements which have payments indexed to foreign currencies that create embedded derivative contracts recorded at fair value through Other (income) expense, net. Refer to Note 14 — Risk Management and Derivatives in the accompanying Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements for additional detail.
•Non-Functional Currency Denominated Monetary Assets and Liabilities — Our global subsidiaries have various assets and liabilities, primarily receivables and payables, including intercompany receivables and payables, denominated in currencies other than their functional currencies. These balance sheet items are subject to remeasurement which may create fluctuations in Other (income) expense, net within our consolidated results of operations.
MANAGING TRANSACTIONAL EXPOSURES